PANAJI/BICHOLIM
In a major development in the toddler’s murder case at Bicholim, police arrested prime accused G Kallesh for allegedly conspiring and instigating the child’s mother “ also an accused -- to kill her two and half year old daughter.
Police stated the 21-year-old hailing from Chitradurga, Karnataka was arrested from Bengaluru in a joint operation by Bicholim police and Upperpeth police station, Bengaluru, following technical surveillance.
“Kallesh allegedly promised to marry the child’s mother, Nagamma (28), on the condition that she abandon or eliminate her daughter, who was born from her previous marriage. She claimed she murdered her daughter upon the 21-year-old’s instigation,” Superintendent of Police (North) Rahul Gupta said. He is now remanded to seven days of police custody.
Nagamma, who was in a live-in relationship with Nithin Kumara (29) in Maulinguem, Bicholim, allegedly killed the child by smothering her. Police said the mother then handed over the child’s body to Nithin in an attempt to frame him for murder. Probe also revealed that Nagamma initially eloped with Nithin, but he refused to marry her, after which the main accused agreed to remarry, provided she gets rid of her daughter.
Postmortem conducted on the child’s body confirmed the cause of death as “asphyxia as a result of smothering in a child with multiple injuries over the body in different stages of healing suggestive of Battered Baby Syndrome.”
Both Nagamma and Nithin, both arrested for murder, are also accused of subjecting the child to prolonged abuse before murdering her. A second team has been dispatched to Chikmagalur, Karnataka, to gather further evidence, the police said.
Further investigation is in progress with Bicholim PI Vijay V Sardesai under the supervision of Bicholim SDPO Shridevi B V IPS and under the overall supervision of North Goa SP Rahul Gupta IPS.
