COIMBATORE: A day after the body of a two-month-old infant was found on the railway track near Irugur, the Coimbatore police have formed two special teams to investigate the mysterious death.
The body was spotted by passersby near the Ravathur level crossing between Sulur and Irugur on Saturday. Disturbingly, a dead chicken, turmeric, vermilion, and traces of blood were also found nearby.
The locals alerted the Podanur police and railway police, who rushed to the scene. The child’s body was later sent to the Coimbatore Government Hospital for postmortem.
The presence of ritual materials led to widespread rumours that the baby had been killed as part of a human sacrifice. However, investigators have dismissed this theory in their preliminary inquiry. “The child was not offered in human sacrifice. It appears someone staged the scene to mislead us,” said official sources.
Tests also revealed that what was initially thought to be chili powder was, in fact, ordinary sambar powder.
Police suspect the infant might have been killed elsewhere and the body dumped on the tracks. Police sources said that there were no external injuries consistent with ritual sacrifice.
Investigators are exploring multiple angles, including the possibility of family disputes, illicit relationship or other personal motives. Sniffer dogs were deployed but failed to trace any suspects. CCTV footage from the surrounding areas is also being examined.