Body of four-hour-old infant found in dustbin of Bengaluru-bound train compartment

Bengaluru: A passenger on the Bengaluru-bound Prasanthi Express from Bhubaneswar found the body of an infant inside a dustbin in the compartment on Wednesday.

After a medical examination, doctors determined that the baby was born just about four hours ago.

Minutes before the train reached the Yelahanka railway station at 11 am, the passenger found the baby wrapped in a cloth in the bin and immediately alerted the ticket collector (TC).

As soon as the train stopped in the Yelahanka station, the station doctor, along with the GRP staff, brought the baby out and checked the pulse, but the baby’s heart had stopped. The body has been sent to a private hospital in Mathikere.

The GRP has taken up a case and filed an FIR under IPC Section 315 (act done with intent to prevent a child being born alive or to cause it to die after birth).

A senior police officer, overseeing the case, told DH that they are ascertaining if someone entered the train at a railway station and disposed of the infant. They have not ruled out the possibility of the baby being born inside the train and later disposed of.

“The train’s last stop was Yeshwantpur. By the time all the procedures were completed, the train had left for Bhubaneswar again,” the officer told DH.

Police are gathering information about the passengers who travelled on the train, CCTV footage of the station where the train stopped, and any eyewitnesses to identify any potential leads.