Two arrested as Pune police bust sex determination racket in Baramati

The accused have been identified as Dr Madhukar Chandrakant Shinde, 52, and his aide Nitin Balasoa Ghule, 34. The police registered an offence against the duo under various sections of the Prenatal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act and Section 420 (cheating) of IPC

Pune: The Pune rural police have busted an alleged sex determination racket and arrested two persons, including a suspended government medical officer, who were operating from an under-construction building at Malegaon Budruk village in Baramati, officials said on Saturday.

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The accused have been identified as Dr Madhukar Chandrakant Shinde, 52, and his aide Nitin Balasoa Ghule, 34. The public health department had suspended Dr Shinde in 2017 after an investigation found he was involved in carrying out prenatal sex determination tests. Offences under the Pre-conception and Prenatal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act (PCPNDT) have been registered against him at Yavat, Wadgaon Nimbalkar, Daund and Phaltan, said police officials.

Around 5 pm on Friday, assistant inspector Yuvraj Ghodake of Baramati Police Station alerted the health department officials after receiving a tip-off that the accused were carrying out an illegal sex determination test at the under-construction building that afternoon . Around 6 pm, medical superintendent Dr Mahesh Jagtap of Baramati sub-district hospital rushed to the spot along with the police and caught the duo with a portable ultrasound machine and a surgical probe. The police later handed over the accused to their Malegaon counterparts.

“We had received a complaint about alleged illegal sex determination carried out by the Shinde gang in Daund, Baramati and Satara in February. We had alerted the health department and the Pune rural police, and latter were monitoring the movements of the accused doctor,” said Dr Nagnath Yemapalay, district civil surgeon, Pune.

“One more accused in the case will soon be arrested. We are investigating the possibility of involvement of more people in the racket,” said Balaji Bhange, inspector, Malegaon police station.

Dr Shinde and Ghule were arrested based on the complaint filed by Dr Jagtap. The police on Saturday registered an offence against the duo under various sections of the PCPNDT Act 1994 and Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

As per officials, the case has drawn the attention of the authorities to the use of portable, unregistered sonography machines and choosing places on the fringe of districts in Maharashtra to run such illegal tests.