Police said the woman did not plan the killing or confide in her husband or her parents. (Representational photo)
A 27-year-old woman has been arrested for allegedly murdering her seven-month-old daughter because she thought the child was bringing bad luck.
“The woman initially told us her daughter had drowned in a bucket of water. The crime team seized the bucket and other exhibits, and sent the body for post-mortem,” said DCP (south east) Chinmoy Biswal.
But the autopsy report pointed to strangulation marks on the infant’s neck. The report opined that death was “due to fatal pressure inflicted on the neck”, and that no water was present inside the girl’s internal organs.
“When confronted with the evidence, the woman broke down. She had allegedly killed her own daughter because she though the child was cursed. The woman was superstitious and thought her family’s medical and financial problems were because of her daughter,” an officer claimed.
Police said the woman did not plan the killing or confide in her husband or her parents. After her husband left for work, she allegedly strangled the child with a dupatta and put the body inside the bucket. Later, she took out her daughter’s body and placed it on the bed, following which she ran to her husband’s shop and informed him about the death, police said.
“His wife was mourning with him and he did not suspect she had anything to do with it,” the officer said. The father is a tailor, and the couple got married over a year ago.
According to police, ever since the child was born, Abida had been falling ill and had also been facing financial problems. Family members, too, had been falling sick frequently, though police said none of it was life threatening.
“The tailor shop they had set up had faced losses. The woman could not spend like she used to. She believed the girl was the cause of her problems,” the officer said.