UK suspends NRI doctor over sex-selective abortions

LONDON: An Indian doctor is being investigated for carrying out sex selective abortions in the UK. An "extremely concerned" health secretary Andrew Lansley asked the police to investigate the matter.

An undercover investigation found consultant Prabha Sivaraman and another doctor agreeing to terminate a pregnancy based on the baby's gender. They were suspended after being filmed in the act.

They have also admitted on record that they were prepared to falsify paperwork to arrange the abortions, Sivaraman works for private clinics and NHS hospitals in Manchester.

She told a young woman who wanted to abort a female fetus, "I don't ask questions. If you want a termination, you want a termination." The woman claimed that she had a blood test in France which left her 'pretty certain' she was having a girl. She said, "That's not really appropriate for us right now, we were hoping for a boy. It's the wrong gender."

The Daily Mail said Sivaraman, a registered obstetrician and gynaecologist who works at Pall Mall Medical in Manchester, told the woman that she could have the procedure as a private patient for £200 to £300 on top of the £500 she paid for the consultation.

Sivaraman later booked the procedure at an NHS hospital for the following week saying it was for 'social reasons'. A spokesman for Pall Mall Medical said it had 'suspended clinical contact' with Sivaraman. "The clinic does not condone in any way the referral for termination on the grounds of gender," he added.