Tamil Nadu: Three accused booked under National Security Act for alleged sale of 16-year-old girl's eggs

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Police have booked three persons under the stringent National Security Act (NSA) in connection with illegally selling (ova) eggs from a minor girl in Erode, Tamil Nadu.

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Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported that two private hospitals in Tamil Nadu's Erode were under the scanner after police arrested three persons on a complaint by a minor girl that she was forced into the illegal trade of her embryo in fertility centres.

The 16-year-old girl lodged a complaint with the police that her mother's lover sexually exploited her since she was 12 years of age and used to sell her embryo in private fertility clinics with the connivance of local hospitals.

In June, the Tamil Nadu government received a complaint that a minor girl from Erode was forced to donate her ovum eggs to hospitals for commercial reasons. The state officials appointed an enquiry committee and formed a team headed by the Joint Director of Medical and Rural Health Services (ACTs) to look into the matter.

The team submitted a report in July after visiting the hospitals, speaking to the doctors, the girl, her mother, his partner and the "agent". The team found that the 16-year-old was taken to the hospitals by her parents and brokers – who are now in jail – and have forced her to donate eggs month after month.

Following the team's report, Tamil Nadu Health Minister ordered the closure of three branches of Sudha Hospital, Ram Prasad hospital and Vijay hospital in Tamil Nadu and even the Scan centres attached to these facilities were closed and hospitals empanelled under the Tamil Nadu State Health insurance schemes were removed from the list.

Tamil Nadu Medical and rural health services joint directors were asked to file cases against these hospitals for violations under Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act and Clinical Establishment Act.

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