New Delhi: In a barbaric incident, a man hammered a five inch nail into the forehead of his wife, whom he suspected of infidelity, and left her bleeding for the whole night with their three hapless children, before the neighbour`s came to their rescue in the morning.

Mamta (27) has slipped into coma after the attack while her husband Pappu was arrested yesterday following the incident in South-East Delhi`s Sangam Vihar area.

The incident took place late Thursday night when Mamta and Pappu were in their room while their three children were sleeping in an adjacent room in their G block residence.

"Pappu had been suspecting that Mamta was cheating on him. On Thursday night they had an argument over the issue which soon tuned ugly. In a fit of rage, Pappu tied her hands and legs and gagged her with cloths.

"He then brought a five inch long nail from outside and hammered it on her forehead. After half of the nail went in, he locked the house from outside and fled from the spot," said a police official.

It was the children who saw the mother lying in a pool of blood and untied her. They kept crying lying next to her all night.

It was only in the morning that the landlord heard the children crying and the woman was rushed to a hospital where her condition is stated to be critical.

Pappu who hails from Etah in Uttar Pradesh was arrested yesterday by the police. A case of attempt to murder has been registered against him.