Maharashtra woman gives birth on moving bus, then throws newborn baby out the window, child dies
A heartbreaking incident, a 19-year-old woman gave birth to a baby boy inside a moving bus and soon after, the baby was thrown out of the window, which led to his death, according to police. The shocking event took place around 6:30 am on the Pathri-Selu Road in Maharashtra and came to light after a passer-by saw something being thrown from the bus and went to check. To his shock, he found a newborn baby wrapped in a cloth. He quickly called the police using emergency number 112.
The woman, named Ritika Dhere, was traveling in a sleeper coach bus from Pune to Parbhani with a man named Altaf Shaikh, who claimed to be her husband. During the journey, Ritika started having labor pains and gave birth to the baby right there on the bus.
Police are now investigating the case to understand what exactly happened and why the baby was thrown from the bus.
“A woman, identified as Ritika Dhere, was travelling to Parbhani from Pune along with Altaf Shaikh, who claimed to be her husband, in the sleeper coach bus of Sant Prayag Travels. During their journey, the woman, who was pregnant, started experiencing labour pains and gave birth to a baby boy. However, the couple put the baby in a piece of cloth and threw him out of the vehicle,” a police official quoted in the PTI report said.
The bus driver noticed something being thrown out and asked Altaf Shaikh about it. He claimed his wife had vomited because of motion sickness.
Luckily, a man passing by saw the cloth bundle on the road, found the baby inside, and immediately called the police. A patrolling team quickly responded and stopped the bus. After a short inquiry, police took Ritika Dhere and Altaf Shaikh into custody.
During questioning, the couple reportedly told police that they couldn’t afford to raise the baby, so they chose to abandon him. Sadly, the baby died after hitting the road, police confirmed.
Ritika and Altaf are originally from Parbhani and had been living in Pune for the last 18 months. Although they claimed to be married, they were unable to show any legal documents proving it.
Police took Ritika to a hospital for treatment. A case has been registered at the Pathri Police Station under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for hiding a birth and secretly disposing of a dead body.
The investigation is ongoing.
(With PTI inputs)
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