UP: Couple accuses doctor of keeping their baby as mortgage for not paying bill

A couple has accused that a doctor in Usha Nursing Home here has kept their baby as a mortgage for not paying the hospital bills worth Rs 40,000.

Talking to ANI, Shikha, mother of the child, said: "In September 2018, I gave birth to a boy and after the delivery, a bill of Rs 40,000 was given to us. We didn't have that much money to settle the bills.

"The doctor came up with a solution and said that we can return the money, but they will keep my child as a mortgage till we fully pay the amount," she added.

Mohar Singh, child's father, said: "We gradually paid Rs 30,000 and when we approached the doctor with the rest of the money, he drove us away and didn't give our child back."

However, Additional Superintendent of Police (ACP) Anil Kumar Singh said: "During the inquiry, the doctor said that the couple sold their child in Muzaffarnagar and the couple is denying it. Legal action will be taken against the perpetrator if they have sold the child."

An investigation in connection with the case is underway.