Baby re-united with saviour

Taking note of a Hindustan Times report of a destitute woman who died after childbirth on the city's streets, the Delhi High court on Wednesday reunited the baby with the woman who had taken care of her before the police took her to an orphanage.

Taking note of a Hindustan Times report of a destitute woman who died after childbirth on the city's streets, the Delhi High court on Wednesday reunited the baby with the woman who had taken care of her before the police took her to an orphanage.

HT Image

Granting visitation rights to Rita Arthur Fredrick, a shop owner at Shankar Market in central Delhi, where the baby was born, the court said such an incident was unacceptable when the government had several schemes for the welfare of women and children.

"It is painful to see children taking their first breath on a roadside," said high court chief justice Deepak Mishra.

Karishma was born on July 26. Her mother died on July 31.

Najmi Waziri, counsel for the Delhi government, said the mother had, before dying, given her consent to Fredrick to look after the child.

Also taking note of an incident in Noida where a woman gave birth in a car after being turned away by the district hospital, the court directed the government to file a counter-affidavit within four weeks to explore ways to curb such practices in government hospitals.