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BHUBANESWAR: A man was arrested from Odisha 's Bhadrak district on Tuesday for allegedly selling his 11-month-old son to purchase a mobile phone with part of the money he received in exchange.

Police said Balaram Mukhi sold his son for Rs 23,000. He spent Rs 2,000 on the mobile phone, Rs 1,500 on a silver anklet for his seven year-old daughter and the rest on alcohol. Cops also questioned Mukhi's wife, Sukuti. The couple has another 10-year-old son.

Bhadrak superintendent of police Anup Sahoo said Mukhi has no regular income. “He works as a sweeper and seems to be a habitual According to police, Mukhi's brother-in-law Balia and an anganwadi worker were also involved in the crime. The three got an opportunity to make money when they met a couple in their sixties.

Somnath Sethi, who had retired as a driver with the state government, and his wife had lost their 24-year-old son in 2012. “Sethi's wife had been suffering from depression after their only son died and he had told his acquaintances to look for a child they could adopt so that his wife recovers,“ said Manoj Rout, inspector-in-charge of Bhadrak town police station. He said that the couple too would be investigated.

The anganwadi worker who knew the Sethi couple contacted Mukhi and struck a deal between them.

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