The Belagavi police in Karnataka Monday arrested an interfaith couple for allegedly killing their newborn by dumping her in a garbage bin. Mahabalesh Kamoji, 31, and Simran alias Muskan, 22, from the Abadgatti village near Kittur, had been in a relationship for three years and were set to marry soon despite opposition from their families, the police said.
They said Muskan’s family was unaware of her pregnancy. On March 5, she allegedly went into labour and gave birth alone in a bathroom. According to Superintendent of Police Bhimashankar Guled, Muskan learned how to deliver the baby herself by watching videos online.
During the delivery, she was allegedly on a video call with Kamoji. To conceal the birth from her family, they decided to abandon the baby, said the police. Kamoji allegedly packed the baby in a plastic bag and discarded it in a garbage bin near Ambadgatti the same day.
A few days later, local residents found the baby’s body and alerted the Kittur police. The police registered a case under Section 94 (trying to hide the birth of a child by secretly disposing of the body) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). They also conducted a postmortem examination and arranged for the funeral. A two-week investigation led to the arrest of the couple in Ambadgatti.
The police said the couple confessed to disposing of the baby to hide the birth from others. They then charged the duo under BNS sections 103 (murder), 238 (destruction of evidence), and 3(5) (criminal liability), and presented them before a court. The police are continuing with theirprobe into the circumstances leading to the alleged crime.
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