I think babies are ppl too and most of them don't want a stranger's touch. By the time my babies could object they rarely wanted anyone except close family touching them. Even MIL would get a cry!

I say simply and politely, "please don't touch my baby". And I don't pass her around for cuddles either. Intimacy is not something I encourage with strangers.

I am more than happy to talk and smile and encourage my kids to do the same. But I personally would never physically handle another person without their express permission.