TW: Mention of graphic details
The limb of a newborn was accidentally chopped off by its mother, a 24 year old nurse, when she gave birth to her baby on her own in her hostel washroom, on Monday, April 29. W Vinisha from Nagercoil is a nurse in a private hospital in Chennai and reportedly performed an episiotomy procedure on her own without any medical help. An episiotomy refers to a surgical procedure, where an incision is made in the perineum to help with the childbirth.
Speaking to TNM, police said that Vinisha, working at Geri Care Hospital in T Nagar had discovered her pregnancy only during her fifth month and attempted to abort the child. According to reports, her relationship with a software professional in the city had ended seven months ago, and she had not disclosed her pregnancy to anyone.
On the night of April 29, Vinisha had taken some painkillers and returned to their hostel after experiencing stomach pain and bleeding. Later, after her roommate had gone to sleep, Vinisha had given birth to a stillborn child in the hostel bathroom.
The attempt to deliver the child by herself took a disastrous turn after the child was allegedly mutilated, which resulted in an injury in its neck and the loss of a limb.
However, hearing her cries, her roommate woke up, and rushed Vinisha and the newborn that sustained injuries, to the hospital. While they found the body of the child wrapped in a cloth, they could not retrieve the limb which was allegedly flushed down the toilet. But the child was declared dead. The Mambalam police were notified of the incident by the doctors after which a police team recovered the child's body and sent it to Government Maternity Hospital for a postmortem.
Meanwhile, the Mambalam police have registered a case under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 315 (intend to prevent a child from being born alive or cause it to die after birth) and 201 (concealing evidence), and a probe is underway. Meanwhile, Vinisha is admitted at the Government Maternity Hospital in Kodambakkam and is on 48-hour observation, after she suffered from excessive loss of blood and lost consciousness.