Sex determination case: Former IMA president remanded in judicial custody

In the meantime, the IMA state office-bearers conducted a virtual meeting and decided to suspend Dr Kute “from enjoying all privileges of the membership of IMA”. Dr Kulkarni said they have also forwarded details of the case to the IMA headquarters in New Delhi.

A few past presidents of the IMA Maharashtra chapter said they regretted having “erred” in selecting Dr Kute to helm the association for the 2022-23 term.

Past president Dr Santosh Kadam said the IMA had taken up the campaign to save the girl child much before the government had even embarked on the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ movement. “All our branches were at the forefront of this movement. It is, therefore, extremely sad to learn about Dr Kute’s alleged involvement in the case,” he said.

Ahilyanagar district civil surgeon Dr Sanjay Ghogre, who is also the appropriate authority to implement the Pre-Conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC-PNDT) Act, said that in addition to the FIR that was lodged by the Ahilyanagar police in the case, the health department will also file a case in the Judicial Magistrate First Class court against Dr Rahul Bhanage, an ayurvedic practitioner who was also arrested in the case for allegedly using an ultrasound machine to conduct sex determination tests.

Dr Ghogre said Ahilyanagar had 240 registered ultrasound centres.

Dr Bapusaheb Nagargoje, Ahilynagar District Health Officer, said their records showed that Dr Kute had not renewed the registration of his 50-bed hospital located on the outskirts of Shrirampur. He pointed out that the hospital was not registered as a centre to conduct medical termination of pregnancies (MTPs) as Dr Kute was a general surgeon.

Dr Kute’s son Dr Mayuresh told The Indian Express, “Presently, the hospital has been shut. We do not want to comment on the issue.”

Top police officials hinted at a large racket behind the episode. The case came to light when, based on a tip-off that sex determination tests were being conducted for Rs 10,000, the police raided t room in Rahata taluka of Ahilyanagar. A woman constable had posed as a customer and gone to the room before the police moved in. During the raid, police found eight pregnant women who had paid for the sex determination tests. The husbands of seven of these women were arrested along with two others – a villager and an agent.

Sting ops yield results

In the last four years, only 31 of the 286 sting operations conducted to detect female foeticide have been successful. Just last month, the health officials and the police successfully averted a case of female foeticide in Sambhajinagar. The state government says it is intensifying its efforts to strictly enforce the PC-PNDT Act to curb such practices.

Over the past two decades, 627 cases have been filed in the JMFC court against those violating the provisions of the PC-PNDT Act. Out of these cases, 129 have resulted in convictions while decisions in 169 cases are pending. A fair part of the remaining cases have ended in acquittals.

State officials are reviewing pending cases and joint workshops are being held by the State Appropriate Authority and the IMA towards stricter implementation of the Act. Recently, state health minister Prakash Abitkar had explored the possibility of using MCOCA in cases of sex selection especially when it involved organised groups or rackets.

When contacted Dr Sandeep Sangale, Joint Director of Health, Maharashtra, said the sex ratio at birth in Maharashtra has climbed up from 907 girls per 1,000 boys in 2023 to 912 girls in 2024.The state has 12,750 registered sonography and other centres.