Dad burns toddler with cigarette butt to ‘drive devil out of him’

KOLAR: Harish and Renuka from Malur were arrested on Wednesday for inflicting burn injuries on their threeyear-old son Pruthvi with a cigarette butt to drive the “devil” out of him.

HM Ranganaswamy, police sub-inspector, Malur, said Harish, a private vehicle driver , had tied the knot with Renuka four years ago. Harish, a drunkard, would often find fault with his son and scold him. The boy became stubborn and and would bear the beatings stoically. The parents asked their friends how to tackle the boy’s adamant attitude. While some friends advised Harish to threaten the boy, others said ‘devil’ may have possessed him.

A week ago, a drunk Harish came home and saw his son up to some mischief and started beating him with a stick. To “drive the devil” out of his body, Harish reportedly began inflicting burn injuries with a cigarette. When the boy began crying for help, Harish took him to Government Hospital in Malur and ensured he got medical aid. Over the next few days, the wounds began to get infected.

On Tuesday night, the boy developed high fever and was rushed to a private hospital where he was declared brought dead. Based on a complaint by Harish’s father Nanjundaiah, Malur police arrested the couple. Harish initially said the burns were self-inflicted but after intense grilling, he confessed to the crime. Malur police remanded the accused in judicial custody and probe is on.

