The Siliguri Metropolitan Police (SMP) has rescued the baby stolen from outside the Siliguri District Hospital, while they have also arrested the accused woman from Dhupguri in Jalpaiguri district late last night. The 24-day-old infant was stolen when Soma Sarkar, the mother of the child, had been visiting the Out Patient Department (OPD) of the Siliguri District Hospital for her checkup on 16 January, and 15- year-old Saraswati Sarkar, her sister-in-law, who had been holding the baby, was lured by a woman into eating something.

According to Saraswati, the stranger later took the baby from her and fled from the food stall. Police had identified a suspected woman through CCTV footage taken by cameras at the hospital. “Police immediately started investigations based on the complaints. We started tracking the woman after scanning the CCTV footage and tracking the mobile phones.

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We got some clues and a team of police rescued the baby from the house of the accused, Sabita Garai, and her father Sukumar Dutta from Dhupguri late last night. Police have arrested the woman and his father,” said SMP commissioner Sunil Kumar Choudhary. Police handed over the male baby to their family members. “We have started investigations to ascertain their modus operendi, and whether they were involved in a child-lifting racket,” Mr Choudhary added.

Police sources said that the father of the child, Sustanta Sarkar, who is a driver by profession, was taken to Dhupguri to identify his son. “He was kept in a hygienic condition there. His condition is alright. I have no words to thank the police for giving me back my son. I had almost lost hopes, said M Sarkar. The arrested duo was, meanwhile, produced in the Siliguri Court today.