19-year-old delivers baby on Maharashtra bus, throws newborn out of window

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A 19-year-old woman allegedly gave birth to a baby boy on a moving sleeper bus and later, with the help of a man claiming to be her husband, threw the newborn out of the window in Maharashtra’s Parbhani district on Tuesday morning, Hindustan Times reported.

According to the police, the baby died after being thrown onto the road. The incident happened around 6.30 am on the Pathri-Selu Road. The woman, identified as Ritika Dhere, was travelling from Pune to Parbhani in a private sleeper coach bus. She was accompanied by Altaf Shaikh, who claimed to be her husband.

"A woman, identified as Ritika Dhere, was travelling to Parbhani from Pune along with Altaf Shaikh, who claimed to be her husband, in the sleeper coach bus of Sant Prayag Travels. During their journey, the woman, who was pregnant, started experiencing labour pains and gave birth to a baby boy. However, the couple put the baby in a piece of cloth and threw him out of the vehicle," PTI quoted a police official as saying.

Initially, the duo told the bus driver that Ritika had vomited due to uneasiness during the journey, the HT report said.

But the truth came to light when a passerby noticed the bundle thrown from the bus. When the concerned citizen checked it, he found a newborn baby boy inside. He immediately alerted the police by dialling the emergency helpline number 112.

The local police acted promptly and intercepted the bus after a short chase. Both Ritika and Altaf were taken into custody and questioned. During the initial probe, the couple allegedly told police that they were unable to care for the baby and had decided to abandon him.

According to the police, the pair had been living in Pune for the past year and a half and belonged to Parbhani. Though Altaf claimed to be Ritika’s husband, they could not provide any documents to confirm their marital status.

Ritika was taken to a nearby hospital for medical treatment. Police have filed a case against the couple under Section 94 (3) and (5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with the secret disposal of a dead body following birth.

The investigation is ongoing.