ALAPPUZHA: The Cherthala police took a 35-year-old woman and her boyfriend into custody for murdering a newborn baby at Pallippuram on Monday.
Police said Asha, of Pallippuram, her boyfriend Rajesh, 39, were taken into custody. She was married to another person and has two children.
According to police, Asha delivered a baby boy after undergoing a C-Section on August 26 at a private hospital in Cherthala. She was discharged from the hospital on Saturday. On Monday, an ASHA worker from the panchayat visited their home, but the child was not there. When the worker inquired about the baby, Asha claimed that the baby had been given to a childless couple from Tripunithura due to financial constraints to nurture the child. The sceptical ASHA worker informed the police, who arrived at the home of the woman and questioned her. But she repeated the same story.
“When the police cross-examined her for the address of the adopted couple, she failed to provide it, increasing their suspicions. Upon further questioning, the woman revealed that her lover had killed the child. She also disclosed her friend’s address and the police took him into custody. During interrogation, he admitted to killing the child, and the body was taken out from the toilet of his house in the panchayat,” said K V Benny, DySP Cherthala.
A similar incident was reported in Cherthala on August 11, where a newborn baby was found missing after delivery. Later, the police arrested the mother, her boyfriend, and his accomplice for burying the child in a paddy field near Thakazhi.