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6 months on, daughter of CPI(M) leader looks for her missing child
Belonging to a Communist family, Anupama said she even approached some Politburo members, including Brinda Karat to help get her child back. Though all promised help, she said, Anupama and her husband K Ajith are still searching for their baby, who turned one on Tuesday.
A 23-year-old daughter of a prominent CPI (M) leader in Kerala has been knocking on many doors for the past six months, trying to find her missing girl child allegedly taken away by the former’s parents.
The police here registered a case against Peroorkada CPI (M) area committee member PS Jayachandran, his wife and four others on Tuesday after complainant Anupama S Chandran appeared in on Asianet News to reel out her woes.
Belonging to a Communist family, Anupama said she even approached some Politburo members, including Brinda Karat to help get her child back. Though all promised help, she said, Anupama and her husband K Ajith are still searching for their baby, who turned one on Tuesday.
“I was tortured while pregnant and taken to several places to abort, but I refused consent. My father sometimes says the child is in Tamil Nadu or north Kerala. The DNA test of two children admitted at the same period in children’s home was also done but both failed to match us. I am ready to fight it out for my baby,” she said.
Though Jayachandran claimed that the baby was with the government-run child welfare committee home (an orphanage), the couple failed to trace the baby. Police have booked the father, mother and four others under sections including 361 of the Indian Penal Code (kidnapping baby from lawful guardianship). Though some of the sections are non-bailable, no arrest was carried out, the police said.
On April 19, Anupama registered a complaint with the police and sent a copy of it to the chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and state police chief alleging that her relatives forcibly took away her baby and they feign ignorance now. She said the police failed to take any action due to political pressure, and she was forced to speak on a news channel after her all attempts failed. According to her complaint, the baby was found missing three days after delivery on Oct 19, 2020.
Jayachandran claimed that since the child was born, the couple decided to shift her to a care home with the full consent of Anupama. He said she signed on stamp paper, but Anupama said she signed under duress, and she had several problems post-delivery because it was a C-section. Both Anupama and her husband Ajith are active workers of the Student Federation of India (SFI) and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), CPI (M) feeder organisations.
Jayachandran said the family opposed their relationship because Ajith had already married and had a child. But Ajith said he got married only after his divorce from his first wife, and his in-laws were opposing their relationship since he belonged to a Dalit family.
The issue has left the ruling party red-faced, but it gave strict directions to its leaders not to talk about a “family issue” in public. But many activists decried the party’s continued silence saying its “rights champion” face got exposed. “We tried to settle it several times. Since a case was registered, let it take its course now,” a senior CPI (M) leader, who did not want to be named, said.
State women commission chief P Sathi Devi said some of her charges were right, and the commission will take them up.
“It is shocking a mother is running pillar to post for her child. She even said from chief minister Vijayan to politburo members were aware of her case. It is shameful. The government should intervene immediately to locate her baby,” said Congress leader Bindhu Krishna urging left intellectuals and others to respond.
When contacted, an official of the Peroorkada police station in Thiruvananthapuram said there was no delay on their part and refused to give details since the case was under investigation.
