In the case where a newborn’s body was allegedly buried by the mother near their house and later unearthed from Trippunithura in Kochi, police have said that she committed the crime all by herself and there was no conspiracy.
The accused buried the infant’s body after giving birth in the toilet.
Swapna, wife of Pradeep, had given birth to the infant in Trippunithura on April 25. The incident came to light when Pradeep found Swapna bleeding that day and took her to hospital. Though initially she claimed that she had a stomach pain, doctors found that she had just finished her delivery. It was then Swapna revealed that she delivered a baby boy and cut the umbilical cord herself. She had also claimed that the baby died as soon as it got delivered. Pradeep was not aware that Swapna was pregnant, according to police.
According to the post-mortem report, the infant died of injuries to the head, after being hit on a hard surface.
Police have not yet arrested the woman, as she is weak and still under treatment. A case under IPC Section 318 has been slapped on her.
"The body was not buried by digging a pit. The woman had removed some soil to keep the body there. After putting the body there, she covered the infant with soil and kept a vessel on top of it. It seems to have been done in haste as we were able to see the body right after we removed the vessel," The Times of India quotes Trippunithura station house officer S Sanal as saying.
Police also reportedly said that though Pradeep had maintained that he was unaware about his wife’s pregnancy and had no physical contact with her for the last one and half years, the dispute over parentage of the infant has nothing to do with the investigation.
On March 29, 2017, a similar incident happened in Pathanamthitta district of Kerala where a woman had been arrested for burying her newborn after she delivered inside a toilet.
The incident came to light when a few of the neighbours found an infant’s body being pawed by stray dogs beneath a coconut tree.
Asha, 36, who delivered a baby boy on March 18 was arrested by police and was later remanded in judicial custody.