MALAPPURAM: Residents of Mampad on Wednesday rescued a six-year-old girl and a three-year-old boy who were being starved and tortured by their parents from a room in a building rented out to migrant labourers.
The Nilambur police arrested their father, Thankaraj, 35, and stepmother Mariyamma, 28, natives of Virudhachalam in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu. When the local residents broke into the room, the children were in a very weak condition. They were unable to walk properly and were tired because of the brutal attacks from the parents.
“The areas around the eyes of the girl were swollen. We also saw several injury and burn marks on the children,” said Shehban Mampad, a resident. The girl child told the residents that her stepmother had rained blows on her eyes three days ago.Both children were unable to walk properly as they had been deprived of nutritious food for several months, said an officer at the Nilambur police station.
The children were later admitted to District Hospital in Nilambur. The hospital authorities said the children need at least five days of care to regain health. Local residents and Mampad panchayat authorities came to know about the children’s situation when migrant labourers from West Bengal living in the next room shared pictures of the malnourished children on social media.
“The parents would not give sufficient food to the children or allow those living in the adjacent room to feed them.This situation prompted the labourers to share the pictures of the children on social media,” said a resident.