KRISHNAGIRI: A body of a three-day-old newborn female baby was exhumed after 13 days for postmortem, following suspected infanticide near Shoolagiri on Wednesday.
According to a health department official from Shoolagiri block, “S Pavithra (28) of Madharasanapalli near Shoolagiri gave birth to her third female baby in a private hospital at Hosur on October 12.
The baby was born with a low birth weight of around 1.5 kg and preterm birth complications. The same day, the baby was referred to Government District Headquarters Hospital in Hosur. On October 15, the baby was discharged against medical advice and died at home.
Meanwhile, the mother, who already has two female children aged 8 and 5, admitted to a private hospital in Hosur was discharged on October 14. Her husband Sathish (33) is a farmer in the village.”
“When a health department staff member allegedly enquired about the baby’s status on October 15, relatives said the baby was under treatment. Then on October 21, again the health department tried to check the health status of the baby and found that the baby had died and was buried,” an official added.
Following this, a verbal autopsy was conducted, and Uddanapalli Primary Health Centre medical officer, Dr S Mohan lodged a complaint at Shoolagiri police station on October 24, Saturday, about the suspicious death of the baby.
Based on the complaint, Shoolagiri tahsildar Balaji, police, and health department officials reached the village on Wednesday and exhumed the body. A postmortem was conducted by Dr K Thunder Chief and Dr Rajkumar of Government Krishnagiri Medical College Hospital.
Health department sources further added that, according to the preliminary report, no suspicious activity was found in the baby’s death. Further investigation is under way to ascertain the circumstances of the death.