The most common advice given by family to a couple going through rough times – Bachcha kar lo, sab theek ho jayega! (Have a baby, all will be fine). However, this is the most absurd decision an adult couple can take either by influence or independently.
It could turn out to be a disaster not just for the husband and wife, but more for the child that is born to warring parents. Such is a shocking story reported from Pune.
Case:
A couple was arrested by the Pune police on Thursday for abandoning their 3-month-old son at a church and informing their family that the child had died. The couple are also parents of a 5-year-old son and well educated.
An offence in this case has been registered with the Khadki police station and the couple has been booked under Section 317 (exposure and abandonment of child under twelve years, by parent or person having care of it) of the Indian Penal Code.
However, according to police, they were also bailed out on the same day by the court.
What Happened?
According to police, the baby, who was wrapped in a shawl, was spotted by local residents near a church in Khadki on Tuesday morning. On receiving information from them, a police team reached the spot and took the baby to Sassoon General Hospital.
One person came forward and identified the baby as his sister’s son, but also informed police, that his sister had told him that the baby had died. Litesh Tinku Das (28), a resident of Mula road and a social worker quoted:
I saw the baby’s uncle’s social media post as he was an acquaintance. Another friend’s wife saw the child and brought it to my notice and in turn to the police. The sweating had drenched the baby’s clothes completely and it was shivering.
Only a small part of the zip covering it’s body was open. At night itself, I had called the acquaintance and told him that the baby he mentioned in his social media post has been found. He was shocked and said that it was his sister’s baby and that a funeral was held for him.
Initial investigation revealed that the baby’s parents had been separated for a few years. However, they had started living together recently for the sake of their son. During this period, the woman gave birth to another boy nearly three months ago.
Husband Suspected Adultery
The husband, however, was suspicious about whether the baby was his, and he allegedly asked his wife to get rid of him. After the couple started having frequent fights over the issue, they decided to abandon the baby near a church, said police. Senior Police Inspector Rajendra Sahane told Hindustan Times,
The man is an engineer and the wife is a housewife. They have been married for seven years, but they had differences and were separated for a while. Last year, they came back together and the wife got pregnant around the same time and delivered a baby in August. But he had doubts and gave her the option of either leaving him or abandoning the child. She chose to abandon the baby.
Sahane continued,
We arrested the couple for abandoning the baby. The court released them on bail on Friday. The abandoned baby is in custody of the Child Welfare committee.
The police are looking for a legal recourse for the baby. The couple may also face charges for forging the baby’s death certificate.
In our opinion, this situation is directly responsible for the absence of shared parenting laws in India when a couple separates. Most often, the custody is handed over to mothers and thus, men prefer to live in an abusive marriage or reconcile for the sake of children.
Divorce is not taboo, however, if custody battles could be sorted out amicably, where each parent is given equal time to be spent with their child, we may not land up in such situations again. Here’s hoping that both children in this case can be secured with a happy future.
ALSO READ –
https://mensdayout.com/in-the-news/child-adoption/
https://mensdayout.com/in-the-news/child-custody-to-fathers-in-india/
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