A month-and-a-half old baby girl is recovering in hospital after her parents apparently tried to bury her alive.
The child, named Radhika, is being treated for dehydration and severe malnutrition in a hospital in Meerut, India, following her ordeal, the BBC reports.
The horrifying incident came to light on Wednesday when a trustee at a burial ground heard crying and alerted police.
Radhika was apparently found wrapped in a bundle by a half-dug grave, alongside a number of ritual offerings.
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The child’s mother Bharati Rani and father Dinesh Kumar were arrested, as was Dinesh’s brother, who was reportedly with the couple.
According to NDTV, police were informed Radhika was being buried on the advice of a “godman” or spiritual guru, who said the act would protect the rest of the family’s children from serious illnesses in the future.
The couple had already lost one child to illness, One India said.
Radhika’s uncle and father will now face charges of attempted murder, police say. But Bharati told the BBC: “It’s an absolute lie. Tell me which mother would want to kill her own child.”