Five-month-old baby allegedly sold for Rs 4,000 in Tripura's Sepahijala, probe on

Agartala, Nov 7: The Sepahijala district administration has launched an investigation into reports of a five-month-old baby allegedly being sold for Rs 4,000 in the Kaiadhepa village, under the Bishalgarh subdivision.

District Magistrate Siddhartha Shiv Jaiswal confirmed to The Assam Tribune that an investigation team has been dispatched to verify the facts of the case.

“The matter is under investigation. We have formed teams to confirm whether the report is accurate. If the sale is confirmed, steps have been taken to rescue the child as quickly as possible,” Jaiswal said.

According to initial reports, the mother, identified as Ratna Bauli, already has two children and allegedly resorted to selling her third child due to extreme financial hardship.

Local sources claim that Ratna, unable to sustain her growing family, made the difficult decision in hopes of securing a better future for her baby boy.

The alleged incident came to light through Partha Pratima Majumder, a senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader in Bishalgarh and divisional committee secretary, who highlighted the family's desperate circumstances.

“I met the mother personally. She has received no government assistance—no job card under MGNREGA, no PM housing benefits, and she’s not enrolled in the Public Distribution System,” Majumder said, calling upon authorities to intervene and bring the child back to his mother.

In response, local police have also begun an inquiry. Debajit Chatterjee, Officer-in-Charge of Madhupur Police Station, said, “Our officers are verifying the matter. We’ve spoken to village elders and local representatives, and the investigation is ongoing.”

Authorities are yet to confirm the details, but community leaders and officials are pressing for swift action to ensure the child's welfare and provide assistance to the struggling family.