Four persons, including the parents of a nine-day-old baby girl, were arrested on Friday (September 6, 2024) by the Veppamkuppam police in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, following the death of the infant at the couple’s house in Bomankottai hamlet, which falls under Serpadi village of Anaicut Panchayat Union in the foothills of Jawadhu Hills.
The police said the parents of the baby – C. Jeeva, 30, and J. Diana, 25 – allegedly poisoned her as they did not want a girl child. Jeeva’s mother C. Baby, 55, and their relative N. Umapathy, 50, were also arrested from Umapathy’s house in Vellore town.
Jeeva and Diana, who got married a few years ago, have a two-year-old daughter as well. Jeeva is a farmer, and the lack of a regular income has been a source of conflict between the couple, the police said.
Diana gave birth to their second child on August 27, 2024, at the Primary Health Care Centre (PHC) in Odugathur town. They were later admitted to the Government Medical College Hospital in Vellore and were discharged a few days ago.
The police said the couple was hoping for a baby boy and was upset that the newborn was a girl.
A preliminary inquiry revealed that the couple felt another girl child would be an additional burden. They allegedly fed the newborn papaya sap, which might have killed her, the police said.
Papaya sap recovered from the couple’s backyard | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Later, they alerted their parents that the infant was unconscious, and buried her in the backyard of their house.
K. Saravanan, Diana’s father, informed the Veppamkuppam police, who rushed to the spot. The police team inspected the house and found the body of the newborn from a water channel in the couple’s backyard.
On orders issued by N. Mathivanan, SP (Vellore), special teams were formed to arrest the parents. The body of the baby girl has been sent for postmortem examination.
All the arrested persons have been lodged at the Central Prison in Vellore.
Published - September 06, 2024 03:27 pm IST
