PATNA, Dec. 6 -- The Government Railway Police (GRP) busted a child-stealing gang and rescued a six-month-old boy who had been stolen from Hajipur railway station and sold for Rs.3.5 lakh, officials said on Thursday night. Police have arrested a married couple along with four others, while the mastermind remains absconding. "The gang members have confessed that they used to steal minor children on demand and sell them to childless couples," said Rajeev Mishra, Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Railway. He added that the mastermind, Avinash Kumar, a rural medical practitioner (RMP), is still on the run. The arrested accused have been identified as Arjun Kumar, Kiran Devi, Sonu Kumar Singh, Munni Kumari, and Anil Kumar Shah and his wife Gudiya Devi - all residents of Vaishali and Samastipur districts. The DIG told HT that Hajipur GRP received a complaint from Sumit Kumar on October 3, stating that his six-month-old son had gone missing while the family was sleeping on platform number 1. "He realised around 4 am that his son was missing from his mother's lap. On the directive of Rail IG P. Kannan, Muzaffarpur Railway SP Veena Kumari constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to trace the child," Mishra said. CCTV footage showed a man in a green T-shirt sitting near the infant and a woman standing behind the child's mother. In another clip, the man was seen carrying a child in suspicious circumstances. They were later identified as Arjun Kumar and Kiran Devi of Hajipur. Police traced the mobile numbers active at the station at the time and shortlisted around ten. A team later apprehended Arjun and Kiran from different locations. During interrogation, the duo named Sonu Kumar Singh and Munni Kumari. Acting on their input, police recovered the kidnapped child from a couple at Chaksaho village under Shahpur-Patori police station in Samastipur. The couple, who run a grocery shop and have been childless for two decades, claimed they were unaware the child had been stolen. Sonu later revealed that RMP Avinash had asked him to procure a five- to six-month-old child for sale. Sonu contacted Arjun, who instructed Kiran to recce bus stands and railway stations. The duo eventually stole the child from Hajipur railway station and took him to Avinash's clinic, where the deal was finalised with Anil Shah and his wife Gudiya Devi for Rs.3.5 lakh. Police said the couple paid Rs.1 lakh through UPI to Avinash's account, while Arjun received Rs.1.20 lakh and Sonu Rs.1.30 lakh. Munni Kumari worked as a nursing assistant at Avinash's clinic. Investigators said the couple trusted Avinash as he lived in their neighbourhood. "Avinash had claimed that the child had been abandoned by his parents at the clinic," Shah reportedly told police. The DIG further said relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita related to kidnapping, trafficking, criminal conspiracy and the Juvenile Justice Act have been invoked. He added that Arjun's father, Ranjit Rai, had also been arrested earlier this year by the GRP for stealing a child from Chhapra railway station. In that case, an FIR was lodged on July 21 by Chandni Devi of Siwan, alleging that her 18-month-old son Kunal had gone missing from Chhapra station. The GRP arrested Ranjit Rai from Hajipur and rescued the child on September 17....