DHENKANAL: An 11-month-old baby girl was burnt alive after her drunk father reportedly set their thatched house on fire at Barsingha village within Balimi police limits here on Tuesday.
The accused, 24-year-old Babuli Sahu, committed the shocking act in an inebriated state after being refused money by his wife to buy more liquor.
Sources said the accused, a daily wager, lived with his parents, wife Subhadra Sahu, a 3-year-old son and the infant. He was addicted to alcohol. On the day, Babuli came home drunk at around noon and asked his wife to give him Rs 50 for buying more liquor. When Subhadra refused, he became violent and threatened to kill her.
To escape his beating, the woman ran away leaving the infant in the house. This infuriated the accused who reportedly set the thatched house on fire by using kerosene and fled.
Incidentally, Babuli’s father, a mason, was away for work and his mother had gone to a neighbour’s house along with his son when the incident took place.
On noticing the house engulfed in flames, villagers raised an alarm and informed police. Local fire services personnel rushed to the spot, managed to douse the fire and recovered the charred body of the baby girl.
Later, Hindol sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Satya Narayan Nanda and Balimi IIC Salila Pradhan reached the village for investigation. Accused Babuli was also apprehended.
The SDPO said police have detained the accused for questioning. A case has been registered on basis of the complaint lodged by his wife. The baby’s body was sent for postmortem. The accused will be arrested and further investigation is underway.