A nine-day-old baby girl died at her house in Bomankottai hamlet, which comes under Serpadi village of Anaicut Panchayat Union, at the foothills of Jawadhu Hills in Vellore, on Thursday.
Police said it was suspected she was poisoned by her parents, who are still absconding after the incident came to light. They have a two-year-old daughter.
Police said C. Jeeva, 30, a farmer, was living with his wife J. Diana, 25, in an asbestos roofed house. They got married a few years ago.
Diana gave birth to a baby girl on August 27 at the Primary Health Care Centre (PHC) in Odugathur town . They were admitted at the Government Medical College Hospital in Vellore for treatment. They were discharged from the hospital a few days ago. Since then, the couple had quarrelled over the lack of regular income. They were expecting a baby boy this time but they were upset as the newborn was a baby girl.
Initial inquiry revealed that the couple felt that the baby girl would be an additional burden. They allegedly gave papaya milk to the newborn that might have killed her, police said. Later, they alerted their parents that the baby girl was unconscious.
K. Saravanan, Diana’s father, alerted Veppamkuppam police, who rushed to the spot. The police team inspected the house and found papaya trees had been chopped. They also retrieved the body of the newborn from a nearby water channel in the backyard of the house. During the inquiry, the couple managed to slip from the police.
Based on orders of N. Mathivanan, SP (Vellore), special teams have been formed to nab the parents. The body of the baby girl has been sent for postmortem. A case has been registered.
Published – September 06, 2024 12:45 am IST
