‘Like hunters posing with trophy’: HC lays into Goa Police for parading mother who abandoned newborn

The Mapusa Police had arrested a couple from Aurangabad for abandoning a male newborn child, as they couldn’t bear the expenses of raising the infant.

The Bombay High Court at Goa expressed its displeasure at the Goa Police for parading a mother, who was arrested for abandoning her newborn, ‘like a trophy’ and has asked the Goa chief secretary and Director General of Police to respond on how they plan to rein in such ‘privacy violations’.

The high court took suo motu cognisance of the photograph which appeared in newspapers with cops posing with the mother. (iStockphoto)

“The police officials are posing along with the mother as if they are displaying some trophy. The photograph conjures an image of some maharaja (king) posing with their trophy after a hunt. At least prima facie, such action on the part of the officials, who are seen in the picture, may amount to human right violation of the mother in the picture,” the court said.

The Mapusa Police had arrested a couple from Aurangabad for abandoning a male newborn child. The couple had abandoned their newborn as they couldn’t bear the expenses of raising the infant, their third child, owing to their meagre income.

The high court took suo motu cognisance of the photograph which appeared in newspapers with cops posing with the mother and asked the chief secretary and Director General of Police “to place on record whether any rules or guidelines are in place in the matter of police officials interacting with media in pending investigations in general and posing for photographs along with persons accused of having committed any offences.”

The police inspector and sub inspector who are seen in the photograph published in the newspapers, have also been asked to submit their responses.

“The presumption of innocence, is one of the cornerstones of our criminal jurisprudence. Similarly, the right to privacy as well as dignity are now fundamental rights guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution of India. At least prima facie, the action of the police officials in virtually parading the mother before the media, may amount to rendering such fundamental rights of the mother, a casualty,” Justice Nutan Sardessai and Justice M S Sonak observed.

The newborn was found abandoned on Tuesday evening in a garage North Goa’s Mapusa town and was taken to the government run Asilo Hospital in the same town. However, the police said hospital staff recognised the newborn as having been delivered at the same hospital a few hours earlier, which helped identify the parents.

The newborn’s parents Girish Saha and his wife Mala, both aged 30, had fled the state, but were arrested when they returned on Thursday.