Pithampur/Mhow (Madhya Pradesh): A minor girl appearing for her Class 10 board examination delivered a baby boy in the washroom of a private school here on Tuesday.
The incident has raised serious concerns about minors’ safety and need for awareness about their well-being.
The student, originally from Sagar district, was taking her second paper in a private school in Sector 1 of the Pithampur industrial area. She attends a government school but was writing the exam at this centre.
Midway through the examination, she went to the washroom complaining of discomfort and unexpectedly went into labour, giving birth to a full-term baby boy.
When the school authorities came to know, they immediately rushed her to the government hospital in Pithampur. Both the mother and the new-born are reported to be stable and healthy.
The girl’s family lives in a rented house in the Betma police station area and her parents work in Pithampur. Initially, her mother told the police that the girl was engaged and her fiancé frequently visited her, suggesting the pregnancy might have resulted from a ‘mistake’. The parents planned to cover up by arranging their daughter’s marriage later, she said.
However, during detailed questioning by sub-inspector Chandni Singar of Pithampur police, the minor revealed that she had a boyfriend who lived in Jeevan Jyoti Colony under Betma police station limits. She had developed intimate relations with him leading to the pregnancy. She had misled her mother about the circumstances, she disclosed.
Police conducted extensive interrogation over several hours to uncover the full facts. A case has been registered and the matter transferred to Betma police station for further investigation into the boyfriend’s involvement. The authorities are gathering details to ascertain if statutory provisions under the POCSO Act apply to this case.
