Ernakulam rural police on Saturday arrested a man for attacking and injuring his newborn baby. The 54-day-old baby girl, who has sustained a severe head injury, is in the intensive care unit at a private hospital in Ernakulam district.
The incident took place at Angamaly in the district on Thursday. According to police, the man, 40-year-old Shaiju Thomas, assaulted the baby as he allegedly doubted the paternity of the child. The police also said that the man was creating problems as the newborn is a girl.
“On Thursday early morning, by about 4 am, the man is said to have forcefully grabbed the baby from the mother. He hit the baby twice on her head and then threw her on the bed,” a statement released by the Ernakulam rural police said.
The man is a Kannur native while the woman is a native of Nepal. They are residents of Angamaly, according to police.
According to reports, the incident came to light after the hospital administration informed the police about the issue. Hospital officials are quoted to have told The Times of India that after the baby was brought to the hospital, the man kept changing versions on how the infant got injured. While at first he reportedly told that the baby got injured after falling from the edge of the bed while sleeping, he later said that the baby fell while he hit a mosquito that had alighted on her.
The police also told TNM that the man used to assault his wife, too.
The man has been arrested under sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code as well as section 75 (Punishment for cruelty to child) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act.