Psychiatrist Rashmi Jailed for 10 Years

Bengaluru city court recently sentenced 36-year-old psychiatrist Rashmi Shashikumar to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment for stealing a newborn boy and selling him for Rs 14.5 lakh in 2020. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the convict. Rashmi, who had been out on bail, was present in the court when the judgment was passed on February 19, 2025, and was immediately taken into custody. She was sent to Bengaluru Central prison.

The incident dates back to May 2020, when a new mother realized that her newborn boy had been stolen from BBMP Hospital in Chamarajpet. She lodged a complaint with Chamrajpet police. However, it took a year for the police to crack the case and arrest Rashmi. The baby was stolen on May 29, 2020, just hours after his birth, and was sold to a couple in North Karnataka, who were told the baby was born via surrogacy. When police visited the couple's house a year later, they were celebrating the baby's first birthday.

After launching an investigation, police drew a portrait of the suspect using CCTV footage. Over the next year, they questioned over 700 people, scanned 300 CCTV recordings, and examined 5,000 phone call records before tracking down the couple. They were shocked to learn the truth.

According to the chargesheet, Rashmi met the couple in 2015 while working at a private hospital in Hubballi. The couple had a special needs child, and Rashmi promised them a healthy child through surrogacy. In 2019, she collected the necessary samples and materials from the father and later informed the couple that she had found a surrogate mother in Bengaluru. She took Rs 14.5 lakh from them and assured them that the delivery would happen in May 2020.

Rashmi visited the Chamrajpet hospital multiple times before the birth and decided to steal the child from there due to the hospital's weak security. On May 29, 2020, she entered the ward, gave sleeping pills to the attendant, and took the baby while the mother was asleep. She then went to a friend’s house in Vijayanagar, where the couple received the child.

The trial saw several emotional moments. The biological parents of the baby recalled their grief at losing their son and their joy when they finally got him back after a year. Meanwhile, the North Karnataka couple, who had been deceived by Rashmi, expressed their sorrow over the situation. They had grown attached to the child but were devastated upon learning the truth.

DNA tests confirmed the baby's biological parents, and bank transactions, mobile records, and call logs helped the police secure the conviction.