3-year-old beaten up by mother dies within 24 hours after being in coma

Kochi: A three-year-old boy who suffered severe head injury after being allegedly subjected to torture by his mother died at a private hospital near here Friday morning, doctors said.

Doctors at the hospital in Aluva where the boy was being treated said the brain injury allegedly caused after being hit with a wooden object could be the reason for the child’s death.

The toddler, who suffered severe brain injury, had undergone a surgery at the private hospital. The woman, who hails from Jharkhand, was arrested on Thursday in connection with the incident.

Police said she would be charged under IPC Section 302 (murder). Earlier, she was charged under IPC Section 307 (attempt to murder) and Section 75 of Juvenile Justice Act (punishment for cruelty to child).

Police said the woman had allegedly beaten up the child and tortured him as he was disobedient. Police have launched a thorough probe extending it to their native places in Jharkhand.

The shocking incident came to light when the boy’s father brought him to the hospital on Wednesday night saying he had injured himself by falling off a desk. Suspecting foul play, the doctors informed police.

It was found the boy was beaten with a wooden object and there were burn injuries on several parts of his body, police had said. The child had suffered serious head injuries. The right side of the brain was fully damaged, doctors said.

The Kerala government had said it would bear all expenses of the child’s treatment. The government had also sent a team of experts from the Government Medical College Hospital, Kottayam for providing better medical care to the child.

A police team left from here to Jharkhand to get details about the child’s family and also to find out whether the father and mother were his biological parents.