Mother charged with murder of 15-month toddler

Udupi: Police have charged Rekha Naik, the mother of a 15-month-old toddler who was found dead on Friday, with murder under Section 302 (for daughter’s murder), under Section 307 (attempt to murder son) and Section 309 against her suicide attempt.
Rekha’s claim that her daughter was kidnapped was found to be false when she had actually attempted suicide by jumping into the river with her two children. The body of the girl was fished out from Kubja river near Kundapur on Friday.
Rekha and her son, Satwik, were rescued by neighbours when they heard the boy’s cries for help. Police said that she was mentally disturbed.
Confirming the same, Udupi SP Nisha James said, “The case changed from abduction to murder after we found the baby’s body in the river.”
In her statement to psychiatrist Dr Narayan Moorthi, Rekha said that when she got into the rivulet with her two children, Sanvika who was in her arms slipped and got washed away. When she tried to latch on to the toddler, her son too got washed away. In the melee, Rekha too was carried away by the force of the water. However, the two were rescued and brought to the shore by locals who heard Satwik’s screams.
Woman hospitalised
The SP added that Rekha has been hospitalized and is being treated for depression. As she is an in-patient she has not been arrested yet. After her treatment, the court will intimate cops on her condition, the SP explained. Marital dispute is suspected to be the cause for the depression and suicide, she added.