Lucknow, Dec 3 (PTI) A seven-month-old dead foetus being sent to Mumbai by road for testing reached the international airport here by mistake, with news channels and social media prominently flashing it stating that it was the body of an infant.

However, police rejected the news reports and said the mistake was on the part of the courier company. The foetus was handed over to the courier after the misconception was cleared, they said.

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"It was not a body (of an infant). A couple here underwent an IVF procedure. But it was not a success. The foetus was being sent to Mumbai for testing to know why the IVF was not successful. The dead foetus was to be sent to Mumbai by road, but it reached the airport by mistake," ACP of Krishnanagar Saumya Pandey told PTI.

The matter was reported by the airport authorities after they scanned the foetus, she said, adding the courier agent was interrogated and the couple was contacted.

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"The couple told the authorities about their treatment and since it was not successful, the foetus was being sent to Mumbai for testing," Pandey said.

"Prima facie, it was not a criminal matter. The mistake was on the part of the courier company. No case has been registered in this connection," she said.

SHO of Sarojini Nagar Police Station Rajdev Ram Prajapati told PTI that the foetus was around seven-month-old and it was handed over to the courier after the matter was resolved.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)