High Court pulls up Hyderabad Police for lackluster response in female infanticide case

The Telangana and Andhra Pradesh High Court has directed the Hyderabad Police Commissioner to appoint a “responsible officer” to investigate a case in which a quack is accused of having committed female infanticide..The Bench of Acting Chief Justice Ramesh Ranganathan and Justice K Vijaya Lakshmi was hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by R Sandeep Yadav on March 13. The petition had alleged that a woman with no qualifications was performing surgeries at the Gayatri Nursing Home, Hyderabad..Yadav had submitted video evidence of the quack crushing a new born girl to death with her bare hands. On April 3, the Government Pleader, Medical and Health, had admitted that the video was indeed authentic, and that the nursing home had been sealed. .The Court was assured that criminal complaints would be registered and an action-taken report would be submitted by April 10..However, when the matter was taken up today, the Bench expressed their dissatisfaction with a counter affidavit filed by the Additional Commissioner of Police (ACP), which made no mention of efforts made by the police to trace the quack. The Bench remarked,.“It appears that the officials concerned are not bestowing the attention due to a matter which is of a grave nature. New born girl babies are being put to death. It appears that the officials concerned are not serious. Immediate action requires to be taken.”.The Court has, therefore, ordered the Commissioner to appoint an officer to investigate and see to it that the quack is traced and arrested. It was also directed that a report informing the Court of the progress made in the investigation be submitted within a week’s time..Moreover, the Court has directed the personal appearance of the Commissioner, should he fail to submit the report.