HYDERABAD: Hyderabad Police have arrested eight individuals, including two doctors, for allegedly operating an illegal baby-selling network under the guise of a fertility and surrogacy service. The racket was exposed after a couple from Rajasthan, who paid ₹35 lakh to Universal Srushti Fertility Centre in Secunderabad for IVF and surrogacy, discovered through a DNA test that the baby delivered to them was not biologically related.
The main accused, Dr. Athaluri Namratha (64), along with anaesthetist Dr. Nargula Sadanandam (41) and six others, were charged with cheating, forgery, criminal intimidation, and violating surrogacy laws. Police revealed that the clinic’s licence had been cancelled in 2021, yet the operations continued unlawfully at multiple locations, including branches in Kondapur (Hyderabad), Vijayawada, and Visakhapatnam.
DNA Test Uncovers Fraudulent Surrogacy
The Rajasthan couple approached the clinic in August 2024. After conducting fertility tests, Dr. Namratha advised them to undergo surrogacy, assuring that their embryo would be used. Over the next nine months, the couple made repeated payments, including a ₹2 lakh charge before delivery. In June 2025, they were informed that their child had been delivered via C-section in Visakhapatnam. However, no DNA test was conducted prior to issuing a birth certificate.
Suspicious, the couple commissioned an independent DNA analysis at a forensic lab in Delhi’s Vasant Kunj, which confirmed that neither parent had any biological connection to the child. When they questioned the clinic, they were met with threats, blocked calls, and refusals to provide documentation.
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Infants Sourced From Poor Families, Documents Forged
Police said the infant, a two-day-old boy, was purchased for ₹90,000 from a couple living in Hyderabad, originally from Assam. The mother was sent to Visakhapatnam for delivery, after which the baby was handed over to the complainants. The child’s biological parents, Mohammed Ali Adik (38) and Nasreen Begum (25), were also arrested.
The accused include Dr. Namratha’s son, P. Jayanth Krishna (25), an advocate who handled clinic finances, two employees, and an agent. Authorities also seized the clinic premises and recovered equipment related to IVF, MTP, and sex determination procedures, all allegedly operated without proper medical certification.
Officials stated that more than 10 prior cases were filed against Dr. Namratha across Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad, and Guntur, including earlier charges in 2016 and 2020 involving similar allegations.