Kochi woman, sons killed in Australia house fire

June 2, 2012

KochI/Melbourne, June 2: A woman from Thevara, Ernakulam, and her two sons were charred to death in a house fire at their Clayton South home in Melbourne early on Friday.

The bodies of Anitha (37), wife of George Philip, and her sons Philip George (Unni) (10) and Mathew George (6), were found in a back room of the house in Clayton South suburb. Australian media reported that the incident could be a case of murder-suicide, since detectivies have found a note, purportedly written by the woman, from the family's car. It was earlier suspected that a short-circuit could have sparked the blaze.

Anitha's neighbours tried to break into the house on seeing the fire around 1 am, but were unsuccessful. Firefighters entered the house after dousing the blaze 40 minutes later, and found the bodies.

Police were now investigating whether the house fire was deliberately lit. Arson and explosives chemists and crime scene detectives inspected the scene.

The woman's husband, George Philip, who was on a vacation at his home near Mundakkayam, had left for Australia on Friday morning from Nedumabassery airport, unaware of the tragedy.

Anitha's father C K Mathew of Chellapilliyil House in Thevara was informed who said he received a call on Friday morning from the Australian police, apprising him of the incident. They asked him to mail the photographs of the deceased.

"We don't know what had happened. But we couldn't believe the news. Officials from Australian police and other departments spoke to us over phone. They asked us to send a photo of my daughter and two grandchildren," said Mathew. He would be going to Melbourne to attend the funeral services of his daughter and grandsons.

Media reports quoted a close friend Jeanette Pereira as saying that the community was shocked at the incident. "She was a very good lady, a very good mother. The children were very quiet. She looked after them well," she said.

George Philip has been working as an IT consultant for the past seven years. The family was in Canada before shifting to Australia. The boys, Philip and Mathew, were in Preparatory and Class IV, respectively, in Cleyton South's St Peter's Primary School. where 260 students gathered for a prayer service for the departed souls on Friday morning.

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Agencies
January 14,2020

Farukkhabad, Jan 14: In a shocking incident, a new-born baby was mauled to death by a dog inside the operation theatre (OT) of a private hospital in Farukkhabad on Monday.

Family members of the baby boy said that they noticed the hospital staff shooing a dog away from inside the operation theatre and soon after, they were told the baby boy, born just two hours ago, was dead.

The family members said that they found the baby's body on the floor and it had deep gashes around the neck and other parts of the body.

District magistrate Manvendra Singh has ordered an FIR and the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Chandra Shekhar said the hospital has been sealed and an inquiry ordered into the incident.

Sources said that the hospital where the incident took place was unregistered and was being run adjacent to a government hospital.

According to the FIR lodged with Sadar Kotwali police, the infant's father Ravi Kumar said he had admitted his wife Kanchan in the hospital on Monday and she was taken for a C-section to the operation theatre.

After the delivery, Kanchan was shifted to the ward but the family was told that the baby would be shifted later.

An hour later, the family was informed that the baby had died.

The family members then saw the hospital staff trying to chase a dog out of the operation theatre.

The family members forced their way into the operation theatre and found the infant lying on the floor with several injuries on the neck.

The police said that the baby's body has been preserved for examination and post mortem.

The FIR has been registered against Dr Mohit Gupta, and some of the staff members who were present during the delivery.

The hospital owner, Vijay Patel, however, feigned complete ignorance about the incident and said that he had been told that the baby was born dead.

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News Network
June 22,2020

Kochi, Jun 22: A 54-day-old baby suffered brain damage after she was allegedly slapped and thrown on a cot at home by his father in Angamaly municipality of Ernakulam district, police said.

Doctor Sojan Ipe of MOSC Medical College Hospital at Kolenchery said that the damage caused to the brain is serious. The child was admitted with bleeding in the brain on Friday.

On Saturday, 40-year-old pastor Shaiju Thomas, who is the child's father was arrested by the Angamaly police in connection with the incident. He is currently lodged at the Covid first-line treatment centre at Angamaly.

Shaiju has been charged with IPC Section 307 (attempt to murder) and under the Juvenile Justice Act.

According to Angamaly Police, ''the accused was always doubtful of his wife and raised questions over the parenthood of the child. He had slapped the child on multiple occasions. She fell unconscious on Thursday night after a similar attack and was taken to the hospital. We have so far received enough evidence against the accused.''

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Agencies
February 11,2020

Mumbai, Feb 11: A 65-year-old woman was allegedly killed by her husband over debt and illness in suburban Powai here, police said on Tuesday.

The incident came to light when Sheela Ajit Lad was found dead by her neighbours at Sukh Shanti Co-operative Society at around 9.30 pm on Monday, an official said.

The victim was allegedly killed by her husband Ajit Lad, who hit her on the head with a heavy object, slit her wrists and strangled her to death, he said.

The accused absconded at around 7.30 pm, leaving a note at the crime scene, saying he was going to commit suicide and had killed his wife because he was heavily in debt and she was suffering from an ailment, the official said.

The childless couple lived alone in the apartment, he added.

"On the basis of the note, we have registered a case of murder against Ajit Lad and have launched a manhunt for him. We have not traced him or found his body as he had mentioned suicide in the note," deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Zone X Ankit Goyal said.

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