Mother, child reunited

A woman, who sold her newborn to pay the hospital bill for childbirth, has got back the baby.

Administration officials in Matlab Uttar, Chandpur, rescued the boy on Thursday night and returned him to his mother.

Tamanna Begum, 28, gave birth to her son through a C-section at Chhengarchar Pulse Aid Hospital. She remained admitted to hospital between January 26 and 28.

As Tamanna could not pay the hospital bill of Tk 26,000, she sold the newborn to a childless couple for Tk 50,000.

As the matter became known in the area, Upazila Nirbahi Officer Gazi Shariful Hasan along with other officials and police rescued the baby.

Someone brokered a deal between Tamanna and the childless couple, Shariful said.

"The woman who purchased the baby signed a bond, saying she will never claim the baby," he told The Daily Star, adding that the upazila administration gave Tamanna Tk 5,000.

"Soon after my admission, I gave birth to my son, but no one came forward to foot the medical bills. A man told me that I could sell my baby to pay the bills," Tamanna was quoted as saying by UNB.

Tamanna's husband, who is a labourer, has not returned home in a long time, locals said.