Mother reunited with child after alleged sale at birth

Ayesha Akter at 15 was abandoned by her husband Sohel Rana. Sohel left the then five-month pregnant teen at her grandmother's house in Belkuchi village of Bogura's Dhunat and subsequently cut contact.

A neighbour, Md Shahin, reportedly exploited Ayesha's financial situation by promising to cover medical expenses for childbirth and planned to sell the baby without her knowledge. 

Ayesha was taken to Mahbub Clinic in Sherpur, where she gave birth to a boy via C-section on 28 November 2023. 

According to Ayesha, she was forced to sign blank papers while at the clinic. After the baby's delivery, when she asked about the child, the clinic staffers told her that Shahin had sold off the baby.

Local school teacher Fouzia Bithi brought Ayesha's situation to light. Ayesha subsequently filed a complaint against Shahin, Razzak, Samrat Mandal, and other unidentified individuals at Dhunat Police Station on 13 February. 

"He [Shahin] told me I had signed off my child when I later confronted him. He threatened to kill me if I made a fuss about it. I was too scared to go to anyone. After a while, I told Fouzia about the matter. When Shahin found out, he again came and threatened me," she said.

The missing child was located at the Dhunat Upazila Health Complex on 17 February. According to the hospital sources, a man named Yasin admitted the child and then left.

Authorities identified the child as Ayesha's and returned it to her on Thursday. 

All the accused have been absconding since the complaint was lodged with the police station. Locals said that none of them are in the area.

Fouzia Bithi said that Shahin had also threatened Ayesha after she spoke up about the incident. "Even though Ayesha got her child back, we are all still living in fear since none of the accused were arrested," she said.

Confirming this incident, Upazila Health and Family Planning Officer Dibakar Basak said, on February 17, a newborn child aged two months and 20 days was admitted here. 

"After some time the police came to the health complex with a woman and said she was the real mother of the child. The child was under treatment at the health complex till last Thursday. When he recovered, the child was taken to the court by the police."

Meanwhile, Mahbub Clinic Director Aynal Haque denied any involvement in the sale of the baby.

He said a person named Shaheen brought the woman to the clinic. "Ayesha was under treatment at the clinic for a few more days after giving birth. But no baby was sold from here." 

Saikat Hasan, OC of Dhunat Police Station, said the matter is under investigation.