Death of Malappuram couple\'s six kids in nine years triggers police probe

Malappuram (Kerala) The death of a couple's six children in a span of nine years has raised suspicion among police personnel here who have registered a case following a complaint after a three-month-old child of the family died on Tuesday and was buried.

Police exhumed the body, which was buried in the morning, and took it to the district hospital at Tirur for a post-mortem procedure. The infant was the sixth child of the couple, police said. "A case has been registered (of unnatural death) in the matter to verify the death beyond any suspicion raised by locals since five other children of the couple had died in the past nine years," a senior police official said.

The couple had three boys and three girls, of which the third girl child lived till the age of four and the rest died before turning one.

"The post-mortem will take place today itself. We are collecting the medical records of the children who had passed away earlier.

"We will identify the cause of death after analysing the records and discuss the matter with forensic doctors," the Tirur deputy superintendent of police (DySP) said.

However, relatives claimed that there was nothing suspicious about the death of the children and that doctors have said it was due to a genetic disease.

"The post-mortem of the third child was conducted and the doctors said the death was due to some genetic problems. They said they were helpless," a relative said, adding that the family was ready to face any probe.

According to the locals, the couple had claimed that the children have died due to epilepsy.

Sources said the baby was taken to a hospital but had died prior to reaching the hospital early this morning.