Battered baby remains critical, police hunt for parents

Mumbai News.Net
Friday 27th January, 2012

Doctors Friday did not hold out much hope of recovery of a two-year-old abandoned and battered baby girl who was admitted to a hospital here last week with a fractured skull and human bite marks on her tiny frame as police launched a massive hunt to locate the child's parents.

The baby, Falak, was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here last week with multiple injuries, including a fractured skull and a clot on the right side of her brain. The baby also had human bite marks all over her body. She was brought to the hospital Jan 18 by a teenaged girl, who claimed to be her mother.

The police have not ruled out sexual abuse of the teen, who is now in a juvenile home.

Police said they had constituted several teams to find out the real parents of the child and the people who had handed over the baby to the teenaged girl.

Adding to the mystery, a woman came to the hospital claiming to be the baby's mausi or maternal aunt.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) condemned the incident that has shocked the nation and ordered a detailed investigation in the case and asked for a factual report from the police in 15 days.

Doctors said the child has only 40 percent chances of recovery and might not recover soon because of the mental and physical trauma she has undergone.

"We have been able to remove her from the ventilator, but she (baby) is in a transition from a ventilator to normal breathing. Till now, she's unconscious which means she's not able to follow commands," a doctor at AIIMS said while talking to a battery of journalists.

The tone of the doctors hinted at bleak chances of survival of the baby.

Forensic experts examined the wounds on baby Falak's body and reported some movement in the baby Friday.

"A woman came claiming to be her 'mausi' (mother's sister) and said the baby was kidnapped," Deepak Agrwal, assistant professor, neurosurgery, told IANS.

"The baby is severely injured, and has suffered critical head injuries. Her future is uncertain," a doctor said.

Moved by the plight of the baby, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit offered all possible help to the girl.

"The Delhi government will support whatever her needs are, we will fulfil her needs. We are waiting for the medical report, let it come," Dikshit told reporters.

Explaining the child's chances of recovery, Agarwal said: "Statistics show in cases of head injury, 30 percent patients die in hospital, 30 percent remain in a vegetative state for the rest of their life and only 20-30 percent are fine enough to take care of their basic needs, but in that case too they are impaired mentally."

Meanwhile, politicians and women activists condemned the appalling incident.

"The tragic thing is that such cases are not rare and occur very often in our country. Child sexual abuse is all the worse because we have no social infrastructure to support a child in distress," Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Brinda Karat said.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shahnawaz Hussain said: "It (incident) is inhumane and stringent action should be taken against the culprits..."

Have your say on this story