A 40-year-old woman was arrested for allegedly trying to sell a three-year-old boy for Rs. 1 lakh at Palghar town in Maharashtra's Konkan division.
Based on a tip-off, the Manickpur police laid a trap and nabbed the woman on Tuesday night near a skywalk at Vasai railway station in Palghar town where she had come with the child, Additional Superintendent of Police (Vasai division) Raj Tilak Roshan told reporters yesterday. The police sent a woman as a decoy to approach the accused as a prospective buyer, Mr Roshan said.
The accused, Sakina Qureshi, quoted a price of Rs. 1 lakh to sell the child, he said. The accused was caught while the decoy 'customer' was giving her the money.
Sakina Qureshi has no permanent residential address, Mr Roshan said, adding the police suspect that she abducted the boy from Mira Road in Palghar town. A police team has been sent there for investigation.
The police said they have got information that the accused had in the past also sold some children. Mr Roshan said they are trying to find out whether Sakina Qureshi was a member of a child trafficking racket and more people were involved.
She was booked under Sections 363 (kidnapping) and 372 (selling minor for purposes of prostitution) of the Indian Penal Code. Mr Roshan said the child has been sent to a local care centre.
