Delhi: Man held for killing 3-month-old son, wife claims he is innocent

Nisha has alleged that the landlord and neighbours were thrashing her husband when the child slipped from her hands and fell to the floor, sustaining fatal head injuries. Senior officers rejected the claim

Enraged by an altercation he had with his wife, a 26-year-old man allegedly killed their three-month-old son by slamming him against a wall at their residence in outer Delhi’s Samta Vihar near Bhalswa Dairy on the night of December 3, police said.

Police said neighbours told them that the couple has been residing there for nearly a month and they frequently quarrelled. (Picture for representation only)

The man, identified as Ravi Rai, was arrested from the crime scene immediately after the incident, the police said. However, Rai’s wife Nisha (single name) and other family members have claimed that he is innocent and instead blamed the landlord and a few neighbours for the child’s death, a claim that has been refuted by the police.

Deputy commissioner of police (outer-north) Brijendra Kumar Yadav said around 10.30pm on December 3, the police control room received a call about the incident. A team reached the house and found Rai there, allegedly in an inebriated state.

“The baby boy was taken to Babu Jagjivan Ram hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead. The medico-legal case (MLC) sheet of the child showed that his skull was broken,” said Yadav.

The police said neighbours told them that the couple has been residing there for nearly a month and they frequently quarrelled. Rai was not employed while his wife worked in Azadpur Mandi.

Nisha has alleged that the landlord and neighbours were thrashing her husband when the child slipped from her hands and fell to the floor, sustaining fatal head injuries. They (landlord and neighbours) began assaulting her husband after he went to resolve a quarrel between two groups in the neighbourhood, Nisha claimed.

“Our landlord, whose name I don’t know, and some neighbours turned violent and began assaulting my husband because they did not like him intervening in the quarrel. They pushed him inside our room and continued the thrashing. I was trying to rescue him when someone from the crowd pushed me. I lost my balance and my child slipped from my hands, fell to the floor and died. My husband is innocent and has been framed in our child’s murder,” she said.

Senior police officers refuted the woman’s allegations and said the child died after Rai grabbed him by the legs and smashed him against a wall following an altercation with Nisha.

“The woman may be trying to protect her husband by giving such a misleading statement,” said a police officer associated with the case, asking not to be named.

Police said the argument started when Nisha asked Rai to look after their son while she made dinner. Rai refused allegedly refused and said he spent the entire day with him while she was out at work. It led to a heated argument during which ended in the child’s death. Nisha rushed out screaming that her husband has killed her son, said the DCP.

“We have several witnesses to what had transpired between the couple and led to the child’s death. There is no conspiracy in this. If Nisha or Rai’s family has any suspicion, we will record their testimonies and request them to join the probe. All facts will be presented before the court concerned,” he said.