A shocking surrogacy racket has been exposed in Secunderabad (Hyderabad), after a couple found through independent DNA testing that the baby born via a fertility clinic had no genetic connection to them. The couple had paid around ₹35 lakh to Universal Srushti Fertility Centre in August 2024, but on the child’s birth in June 2025, DNA results confirmed the infant was unrelated to either parent.

The clinic owner and doctor, Dr Athaluri Namratha (also known as Pachipala Namratha), along with her son and several staff and agents, were arrested—bringing the total number detained to ten. Investigators allege the racket involved buying babies from economically vulnerable women for approximately ₹90,000 and selling them to clients as their own IVF children via forged documentation and medical records across states including Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Authorities have charged the accused under multiple sections of the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021 and IPC, and sealed the clinic premises while continuing investigations into broader illegal networks of baby trafficking and unlicensed fertility practices across regions.