MP teacher, wife abandon fourth child in forest fearing loss of job; infant survives

A government schoolteacher and his wife in Chhindwara district of Madhya Pradesh have been arrested for allegedly abandoning their three-day-old son under a rock in a local forest area. The infant was rescued by local villagers who were alerted by his cry. They then informed the police. He was first sent to a health centre nearby for initial treatment and later taken to the district hospital for better care.

The accused parents were identified as Bablu Dandoliya, 38, and Rajkumari Dandoliya, 28.

Police said the duo confessed to committing the act as they feared losing Bablu’s job since they have more children than the limit prescribed by the state government.

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Madhya Pradesh has two-child policy

Under the Madhya Pradesh government’s two-child policy, government employees are not permitted to have more than two children. For Bablu and Rajkumari, the child they abandoned is their fourth, after three children, all aged between 11 and four.

A Times of India report quoted Lakhanlal Ahirwar, the officer in charge at Dhanora Police Station, as saying that the arrested duo admitted to hiding the third child from records but feared Bablu would lose his job if the fourth was registered.

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Rajkumari gave birth to their fourth child on September 23, and three days later, they took him to the forest and left him there.

Villagers track baby hearing its cry

The baby was discovered on Sunday (September 28) night after some local people were alerted by its wailing and looked for it. When the stone under which the infant was buried was removed, he was found injured and shivering, but fighting on to survive against all odds.

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Confirming that the child was undergoing treatment at the district hospital, the police said a case has been registered and legal action was underway. The police filed a case under Section 93 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for child abandonment. A senior police officer said more sections, including 109 of the BNS (attempt to murder), might also be added after a legal review.

Doctors say survival miraculous

Doctors attending to the baby at Chhindwara district hospital said it had ant bites and might have been affected by hypothermia. They said his survival was nothing less than a miracle, said another report.

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National Crime Records Bureau data have shown that Madhya Pradesh witnesses the highest number of child abandonment cases in India. Poverty, social stigma and job-related fears often lead to such incidents. However, experts were shocked by the case in Chhindwara since it saw the involvement of an educated family choosing to commit such an act.