Revenue and health officials exhumed the body of a two-day-old baby and conducted a postmortem on Saturday. The police suspect it to be a case of female infanticide. The baby was the third child of J. Thavamurthi and Priya of Irumbuli village. The couple have a five-year-old daughter and a four-year old son.
The complainant, Kalasamuthiram PHC medical officer C. Akshitha said that Priya gave birth to a girl at the PHC on Wednesday. After delivery, Priya went home with the child. The next day, the baby was brought back to the PHC with complaints of breathing difficulties. The newborn was referred to Government Vellore Medical College and Hospital where she was declared ‘dead on arrival’. The body was buried at Irumbuli on Friday.
Acting on her complaint, the Kannamangalam police registered a case under Section 174 (unnatural death) of the Criminal Procedure Code. The body was exhumed in the presence of revenue officials. A medical team, led by medical officer Kamalakannan of Tiruvannamalai Government Medical College and Hospital, conducted a postmortem. The body was buried after postmortem.
“An inquiry was ordered to check if any foul play was involved in the baby’s death. Action will be taken based on the report,” said an investigation official.
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