Woman throws 5 children in well in Gujarat; 4 of them drown
Ahmedabad, Oct 16: Battling poverty, a woman allegedly threw her five children into a well, leading to the death of four of them, before she herself jumped into it in Gujarat's Bhavnagar district, police said Tuesday.
The woman and one of her children survived in the incident which took place Monday night at Panchpipla village in Bhavnagar, an official at Alang police station said.
The woman appeared mentally disturbed and claimed "she saw ghosts whenever she closed her eyes," he said.
Gitaben Bhalia (40) left her home at Royal village in Bhavnagar Monday evening after telling her husband Dharmsinh Bhalia that she was taking her five children to visit a temple at the nearby Panchpipla village, he said.
After reaching Panchpipla, located around 170 km from here, she threw her five children into the well and then herself jumped into it, he said.
Four of the children - a daughter and three sons aged between 1.5 and 7 years - drowned, while the woman and her eldest daughter, aged 8, survived, the official said.
Some villagers raised an alarm and called the police Monday night after which the bodies were fished out from the well, he said.
The woman was arrested and booked under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder), the official said.
He said during interrogation, the woman, whose husband is a farm labourer, mentioned that she was fed up with life as she was unable to look after her children due to poverty.
She also suffered from weak eyesight which compounded her problems, he said.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
