In a bizarre incident, a four-year-old girl died due to loss of breath as her father allegedly performed some strange rituals to ward off ill luck, in Perareddipally village near Atmakur in Nellore district on Thursday.
The worried mother rushed her daughter, Punarvika, first to a private hospital in Nellore and from there to a corporate hospital in Chennai for better treatment.
But the girl, who was unconscious since Wednesday died of asphyxia, said Atmakur Sub-Inspector Siva Shankar, who took into custody the girl's father.
Having suffered losses in business, the girl's father reportedly decided to perform some occult rituals after consulting local tantriks. He put vermillion and turmeric in the mouth of his daughter who gasped for breath and fainted, said the Atmakur police who registered a case and launched an investigation.
