Sex determination test: Man held for third time in TN

A 51-year-old man was arrested in Tirupattur town on Thursday for allegedly conducting sex determination test and disclosing the sex of fetus. This is the third time he has been arrested for the crime since 2011.
G Sugumar of Sama Nagar was caught during a raid at G G Ultra Scan Centre in Tirupattur Municipality Commercial Complex by the team constituted under the Pre-conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act.
A team comprising central and state governments’ health officials monitored the activities of the scan centre. Kannan, superintendent of joint director office of medical and rural health services (MRHS), Nammal, approached the centre under the guise of a patient.
He told staff in the centre that he was suffering from abdominal pain and need to take ultrasound scan. He asked for the doctor. However, Sugumar introduced himself as a qualified person to do the scan.
“The moment gave the report, the team caught him and confiscated the portable ultrasonic machine from the lab,” said joint director (JD) of medical and rural health services Dr E Kalivaradhan.
Sugumar was running the centre after obtaining licence in the name of Dr Dileepan from the JD office six months ago. “He (Sugumar) had been revealing sex of fetuses and making huge money,” added Kalivaradhan who filed a case against Sugumar with the Tirupattur town police.
The police, in turn, registered a case against him under Sections 419 (punishment for cheating by personation) and 420 (cheating) of IPC read with 15 (3) 2 of Indian Medical Council Act and lodged him in the Vellore Central Prison for Men.
Sources in the health department said he was first arrested in 2011 for revealing the sex of fetuses and referring people to doctors for sex selective abortion. He was again arrested on 2013.
A case was pending against him in the Tirupattur court. He, however, managed to get the licence for the third time using Dr Dileepan’s name and started the clinic, added Dr Kalivaradhan. “We tried to contact Dr Dileepan, but no response,” added Kalivaradhan.