The Punjab and Haryana High Court has refused bail to Dr. Anant Ram, a resident of Hisar, accused of operating a large-scale illegal gender determination racket across both states. The court dismissed his petition, emphasizing that female foeticide is a serious national issue, particularly acute in Punjab and Haryana.
Dr. Ram, facing multiple criminal cases with five under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC & PNDT) Act of 1994, allegedly conducted gender determination tests using portable ultrasound machines at undisclosed locations. According to prosecutors, clients were blindfolded en route to these locations to keep the sites secret.
Despite participating in the investigation since December 2023, the state’s attorney argued that Dr. Ram has been uncooperative, failing to surrender the laptop and ultrasound machine used in the tests. Given his repeated lack of cooperation, the prosecution insisted on the need to detain him for further interrogation.
The court rejected defense claims that the FIRs under the PC & PNDT Act were inadmissible, underscoring the betrayal of medical ethics and principles by some doctors driven by greed, thus participating in the destruction of female fetuses.
