In a clear proof of the flourishing pregnancy termination racket in Western Maharashtra, as many as 19 aborted female fetuses were found dumped near a stream in Mhaisal village in Sangli district of Maharashtra.
Taking serious cognizance of the incident, the Maharashtra Government on Monday ordered a detailed probe into the incident.
Condemning the incident, Maharashtra Women and Child Welfare Minister Pankaja Munde said, “This matter is both heinous and condemnable. The State Government has appointed a team of five officials — comprising three local officials from Sangli and two officials from Pune to investigate the matter. We are expecting their report either late today or tomorrow.”
Earlier, giving the details of the incident, Sangli’s District Superintendent of Police Dattatray Shinde had said, “We have so far found the remains of 19 female fetuses near a stream in Mhaisal village. It was after the death of a 26-year-old pregnant woman, Swati Jamdade at a local hospital on February 28 that we ripped
the lid off the pregnancy
termination racket and found the female fetuses lying near a stream”
Swati had died during abortion at the Bharti Hospital owned by Dr Babasaheb Khidrapure in Mhaisal village. Dr Khidrapure, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Homeopathy, has absconded after the discovery of 19 fetuses. The police have launched the manhunt for the absconding doctor.
Swati’s husband Praveen Jamdade had taken the victim to the hospital for abortion. This was despite the objection raised by Swati’s father Sunil Jadhav to letting his daughter undergo abortion. Swati
died of complications
during abortion.
Swati, a resident of Manerajuri village, had two daughters before she became pregnant for the third time.
After a complaint was lodged by the victim’s family, police launched a search and found 19 fetuses near a stream in the village.
Meanwhile, senior Shiv Sena MlC Dr Neelam Gorhe has demanded that a fact-finding committee be appointed to probe the incident.
“Since Sangli district is on the border of Karnataka, a lot of people come to Sangli for treatment. The absconding doctor, who used to run the village hospital, was a homeopathy practitioner. It needs to be investigated as to how this doctor used to administer anesthesia and conduct surgeries and procedures. The role of chemists and stockists in the area also needs to be probed, a fact-finding committee should be formed to investigate the matter,” Gorhe said.
Describing the incident as “most shocking”, leader of the Opposition in the legislative Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patilo said, “It is shocking that we are witnessing a incident of this kind in Sangli. We had earlier witnessed a similar incident in Beed district a few years ago. The State Government should own up its responsibility and ensure against recurrence of such incidents. At the same time, NGOs also need to come out and address the issue”.
Informed official sources said that the state government would take up the issue of flourishing cross-border abortion racket with the Karnataka. This follows the discovery of 19 foetuses in a village of Sangli district which lies on the border of Karnataka.