The Bellary Gandhi Nagar Police headed by PSI Umapathy combed the entire Tank Bund Road area, Circle Inspector Girijapathi informed.

The story starts from childless Zeenathbi (22). Married for four years to auto driver Mohammad Hussain, she was stigmatised and constantly heckled for her infertile condition by her in-laws. Things came to a head when Zeenathbi's younger sister bore a child within a year of her marriage.

It is at this point when Zeenathbi's frustration became very obvious and she accompanied by her husband began visiting private doctors for check-ups. Hussainbi, a vegetable vendor who noticed her predicament and sensed easy bucks, approached Zeenathbi and promised to get hera baby.

It would cost her Rs 500, Hussainbi said.

On October 22, Hussainbi asked Zeenathbi to wait at a particular spot near the Dist HQ Hospital. On the pretext of taking Zeenathbi's 9-year-old sister to the hospital, Hussainbi waited outside the maternity ward till the coast was clear and in mother Hulugamma's absence lifted the baby boy and walked out.

She then handed the baby over to the waiting Zeenathbi, who hired a cycle-rickshaw to Mothi Circle bus stand. However, the rickshaw-puller, an old man who was reportedly drunk then, took them to Kanekal bus-stand instead. This resulted in an altercation between Zeenathbi and the inebriated rickshaw-puller which was incidentally witnessed by a boy selling ice-cream. Taking off from this information police embarked on a house-to-house search and finally nailed Zeenathbi after four days.

Zeenathbi's father Aziz Sab, an electrician with the Municipality here, claimed that his daughter had given birth to the baby 10 days ago. But the police were notconvinced and took the baby to the hospital where Hulugamma was being treated. After identification, the baby was handed over to her.

This is the second case of child-lifting in Bellary in the past few months. It may be recalled that on May 10, a 7-day-old baby boy was lifted from a private nursing home in Gandhi Nagar Bellary, allegedly by a middle-aged woman.

No arrests have been made in this case and investigations are still on.