Blood samples of suspects in Eluru girl’s impregnation case sent to forensic lab

A priest and a private school employee have been detained by police; blood-stained clothes recovered from girl’s hostel room

The Eluru II Town Police detained two people — a trainee priest and an employee of a private school — for their suspected involvement in the case of impregnating a minor girl who gave birth to a female infant at a missionary hostel recently. The girl later threw the infant off the terrace of the hostel building, killing the baby instantly.

The 17-year-old girl, staying at a hostel run by a missionary organisation in Eluru, is understood to have told the investigating officers during the inquiry that she suffered labour pains for about five hours at the hostel before eventually giving birth inside the hostel toilet in the early hours of December 8.

“The girl went into labour at around 11.30 p.m. After about five hours, she gave birth to the baby at around 4 a.m. Eight girls were staying in the hostel room along with the girl,” said an official of the Women Development and Child Welfare (WD&CW) Department, who is part of the team ordered by the Andhra Pradesh High Court to conduct an inquiry into the incident and submit a report.

“The infant’s body was found in the compound of the neighbour’s house, adjacent to the missionary organisation. It appears the baby was thrown from the terrace (fourth floor) of the hostel. However, no major injuries were found on the body,” a police officer investigating the case said on Sunday.

The minor girl, who is undergoing treatment at hospital, said that she gave birth to the baby alone, unassisted by anyone. However, investigation officers suspect that the girl’s roommates, and possibly even the staff of the missionary hostel, might have aided her during the delivery.

“We found some blood-stained clothes in the girl’s room. The role of the roommates and staff of the institute is being probed,” the police officer said.

Speaking to The Hindu, Eluru Superintendent of Police K. Pratap Shiva Kishore said the blood samples of the minor girl, the infant and the suspects have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) to establish who raped the minor girl.

“A team of psychologists is counselling the girl. Necessary protection has been ensured for her at the hospital,” the SP said.

Published - December 15, 2024 08:26 pm IST