50-year-old Bhageerathy*, who works as a domestic worker in Karinkallathani in Perinthalmanna in Malappuram, went to work at Dr Abdul Rahman's house on Thursday as usual.
As she tried to clean the toilet attached to the consulting room of the house, she found that the commode was clogged with muddy water. After complaining to Dr Abdul Rahman, Bhageerathy went back home.
On Friday, however, plumbers who were called in to clear the clog were horrified to find the head of a baby pop out of the commode, as they drained out the water.
According to Nattukal police in Palakkad who are investigating the case (the place is located in Malappuram-Palakkad border), the body of a 2-day old girl child was dumped inside the toilet. Nattukal Sub-Inspector told TNM that the baby's head became visible when the plumbers tried to drain out the water using a rod.
Narrating the incident, the SI said that since the closet was clogged with what looked like muddy water, the domestic worker who went to clean the toilet on Thursday could not see the baby who was dumped inside.
"There wasn't much of a foul smell emanating from the toilet. The body hadn't decomposed when we recovered it. But the baby's placenta was intact and there was blood inside the commode. Seeing the colour of the blood, the domestic worker mistook it for muddy water," the police said.
Due to the presence of blood inside the commode, the police believe that the mother of the baby delivered inside the toilet and flushed the child down.
Dr Abdul Rahman is a physician and offers consultation to patients nearby at home in the evenings. The police said that the doctor also runs a clinic which is around 1 kilometre from the house.
"The house is located in a large plot and there are many houses nearby. The doctor's house is situated around 100 meters away from the road. We are investigating all possibilities," the police said.
The baby's body was shifted to a medical college where post-mortem procedures were completed.