Woman smothers two-year-old child, tries to kill herself

Bengaluru: A 24-year-old woman allegedly smothered her two-year-old daughter before trying to kill herself by slitting her throat, police said. 

The disturbing incident occurred in eastern Bengaluru's KR Puram around 10 am on March 17 and was reported on Wednesday. 

The woman, identified as Chinna, is currently receiving treatment at a private hospital. Police believe she cut her wrist and tried to slit her throat before giving up. 

Chinna smothered her two-year-old daughter with a pillow when her husband, Lakshminarayana, was not home, according to a police officer investigating the case. 

Based on her husband's complaint, police have booked Chinna for murder. 

"We have taken up the complaint based on the husband's statement. We'll take her statement once she recovers and doctors allow her to talk. She will be arrested only when she recovers fully," the officer told DH. 

The couple is originally from Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, and has been living in Seegehalli near KR Puram for three months now. 

Police said Chinna called up her mother shortly before the incident and poured her heart out. She sounded weird and hung up soon after. Her mother got worried and contacted Chinna’s neighbours, requesting them to check on her.

Around the same time, the neighbours heard Chinna's screams from the house. They tried to open the door, but found it locked from the inside. They later broke the door open and rushed Chinna and the child to the hospital. The child was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital, police quoted the doctors as saying.