Navi Mumbai Baby Caught in Illegal Adoption Row, Abandoned After HIV Diagnosis

Navi Mumbai, India: A four-month-old baby girl has been left without a guardian after a fraudulent adoption deal between two women went wrong. A Hindu woman delivered the child at KEM Hospital, Mumbai, using the Aadhaar card of a Muslim woman who had promised to adopt the baby to avoid legal adoption procedures.

The Muslim woman, who suffered a miscarriage, wanted another child, while the biological mother—whose husband is a drug addict did not want to raise the baby. However, after the child was diagnosed as HIV positive in January 2025 at Wadia Hospital, the adoptive woman abandoned her, exposing the illegal arrangement.

The Women and Child Welfare Department has registered a zero FIR against both women under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, and cheating laws. The case, initially reported at Manpada Police Station, Thane, has been transferred to Bhoiwada Police Station, Mumbai, for further investigation.

Authorities stress the importance of following legal adoption procedures and are calling for stricter checks at hospitals to prevent similar fraudulent cases.