A baby was buried alive by her parents because they thought she was possessed.
The 20-day-old infant was left for dead in temperatures of just 3C in Shahjahanpur, northern India. She was underground for around three hours when her wails alerted passers-by.
Locals quickly dug her out and rushed her to a government-run hospital where her condition is stable.
Passer-by Dharmendra Kumar, who first heard the baby’s cries, said: “I was passing through the area at half past seven when I heard a baby crying.
“The sound of her cries led me to the spot. I quickly dug up the earth and found her alive.
“I quickly took her to the nearby government hospital and later informed the police.
“It is such a cruel act.
“I cannot believe how a person could abandon the baby in this cold weather.”
A police investigation found out the infant’s parents, a 30-year-old man and 28-year-old woman, had buried their third-born child.
They were helped by two relatives on the instructions of a so called witch doctor who claimed the infant was possessed.
Police said they have arrested the baby’s father, aunt, uncle and the witch doctor.
Subhash Chandra Shakya, Additional Superintendent of Police (Rural) said: “The baby was buried alive by her maternal aunt Aasma after she was asked to do so by the parents of the baby.
“This step was taken on the advice of a Tantrik who had claimed that the baby girl was possessed and her presence at home could destroy their life.
“We have arrested the tantrik, uncle, aunt and the father but the mother is still absconding.”
