The Dharavi police have busted a child-selling racket as they rescued a 1.5-year-old toddler who was allegedly sold by his father for Rs 1 lakh and later taken to Tamil Nadu, where he was bought by a couple for Rs 4.8 lakh. Nine people have been arrested in connection with the case.

The case came to light on August 8, when the boy’s uncle, Sunny Singh, approached the Dharavi police after being unable to locate the child at Sion Hospital, where the family had claimed he had been taken after suffering a head injury.

According to the police, Singh’s mother received a call from his sister on August 6 saying the boy had fallen and was being treated at Sion Hospital. When Singh went there, he could not find the child. He then went to the family’s house, where the boy’s mother allegedly told him that the child had been sold.

The police subsequently arrested the boy’s father, Sandip Singh, who allegedly admitted to selling the child to a woman for Rs 1 lakh as he was unemployed and needed money.

The investigation led the police to Shabnam Khan alias Rani, who allegedly acted as a link between the sellers and prospective buyers. Police said Khan had previously worked at IVF centres and used contacts from her previous employment to identify people looking to adopt or purchase a child.

“Under the guidance of DCP Mahindra Pandit and Senior PI Uday Soyaskar, several teams were formed and we first nabbed Shabnam Khan alias Rani. After her arrest, she confessed that she was not the only one involved in the crime and we arrested Priya Borade, Akash Borade, Deepak More and others involved in this matter,” ACP Ravidutt Sawant told .

According to the police, Khan allegedly sold the child for Rs 4.80 lakh and enlisted the help of others to transport him to Tamil Nadu. The toddler was later sold to the couple.

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“The child has now been sent to the Child Welfare Committee,” police said.

The police are continuing to investigate the racket and the involvement of other persons. Nine people have been arrested so far.