A mother has revealed she was "hysterical" upon discovering her three-month-old son had been circumcised without her consent.

Three people, including a 61-year-old man thought to be a doctor, have been arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm following a four-year legal battle.

The boy was reportedly staying with his paternal grandparents, who are Muslim, in July on 2013. Circumcision is part of a Muslim ritual known as tahara, meaning "purification", and is primarily carried out for hygiene purposes.

Upon returning home, his mother was shocked to find the ritual had been carried out without her knowledge or consent. According to the British Medical Association, male circumcision is only lawful with parental consent, though it's purported health and hygiene benefits are heavily debated.

"I opened the nappy and ended up having to leave the room because I felt hysterical," the mother, who did not want to be identified, told the BBC.

"It was just awful, really…there was blood and stuff."

The incident was investigated in 2014 after the boy's mother contacted social services at Nottinghamshire Police. It was deemed not to be a criminal matter at the time, and the case was referred to the UK's General Medical Council.

She was later assisted by British anti-circumcision group Men Do Complain and human rights lawyer Saimo Chahal, QC, who raised the case with Nottinghamshire Police for a second time, who re-opened the investigation. The doctor, along with two other suspects – a 44-year-old man and a 47-year-old woman – were arrested on June 21.

They have been released pending further investigation.

"It's illegal to even dock dogs' tails. I've come home crying my eyes out thinking a dog has got more rights than my child," the mother said.

She says her son has suffered from recurring infections, swelling and soreness in the years since the procedure was carried out, and has been advised he may need corrective surgery when he's older.

The mother added that many law-enforcement officers and politicians have failed to show any empathy for the distress suffered by her or her son in the wake of the incident, but says she's relieved action is finally being taken.

"I just can't believe that we've actually got to this point now and it's taken four years," she said.

"If anything good can come of what's happened to my son, it's raising a little bit more awareness to the suffering that comes, and giving people that are thinking of circumcising their children a bit of understanding about what they are doing."