Bhubaneswar, Oct. 28: Taking suo motu cognisance, police today booked 27-year-old Subhashree Patnaik, who had jumped into the Puri main canal near Balianta on the city outskirts along with her one-year-old daughter yesterday, on murder charges.
While the mother was rescued, the body of her daughter was found in the canal near Pipili in Puri district this morning.
Deputy commissioner of police, Satyabrata Bhoi said the woman had jumped into the canal with her daughter with a clear intention of killing her. "We have registered a case under Section 302 (punishment for murder) and 309 (attempt to commit suicide) of Indian Penal Code against the mother. Further investigation in the case is still on," said Bhoi. The police also said that the mother might be arrested.
Subhashree and her husband Satyajit Mohanty are working with the Aviation Research Centre in Charabatia in Cuttack. The couple had got married in June 2013. The cops suspect that the woman had attempted suicide due to a family problem.
Though the fire personnel had conducted a search for around three hours yesterday, they had failed to trace the child. However, residents this morning spotted the body of the baby in the Puri canal near Pipili and informed the police who took the body to Pipili Hospital. The father of the child later identified her.
"She has been against my sister and father staying with us. She had also been asking me not to spend money on them. Besides, she had been threatening to commit suicide," said Satyajit.
The woman had left the house saying that she was going to a nearby temple, as it was her daughter's first birthday. Instead, she boarded a bus and reached Balianta. She walked around 200 metres from the national highway and jumped into the canal along with her daughter.
"We had a brief argument over a trivial issue on Monday night. I had never thought she would take such a drastic step. I had searched for them in Cuttack, but failed to trace them. Later, I came to know about the incident after getting a call from Pahala police outpost," said Satyajit.
