GUWAHATI : Bhauraguri village in Chirang district of Assam woke up to a heinous incident on Monday when a father of two poisoned his daughters to death as he was angry with his wife for giving birth to too many girls.
Hekimuddin Sheikh (45) mixed pesticide with iron syrup and gave it to two of his daughters when their mother, Ambiya Khatun (38) was not at home.
The mother took the girls to Lower Assam Hospital in Bongaigaon district as soon as she came to know about the incident. Nureja Begum, the nine month-old was declared brought dead. Asmina Begum (5), the other daughter is said to be critical.
As per reports, Rupak Kumar Bora, OC of Bijni police station said that the reason behind these crimes was mainly dowry and hatred towards the girl child. The police have arrested Hekimuddin after a case was lodged against him.
Recalling the whole incident Ambiya said that her husband has been torturing her ever since she gave birth to her first girl child. However, she said that the torture increased manifold after the birth of the fourth girl, due to which she also had to move to her father’s place in the same village.
Quoting the same a child rights’ activist, Illias Rahman Sarkar based in Assam attributed such crimes to lack of awareness activities from the government. Sarkar told TOI, “The birth of a girl child is still considered a burden in these societies where Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao is just a slogan on school walls and hospitals. So, the birth of a girl child is no good news here.”
(With inputs from TOI)