Bhopal mother drowns own daughter in drum:Son’s preference drove the killing; relative claims accused even denied milk to one-month-old child

In Part-1 of Crime Files, you read how the mysterious disappearance of one-month-old Kinjal from Dehria village in Bhopal shocked the entire area. Mother Sarita claimed that the child had been taken away by a ‘spirit’, after which a tantric drama unfolded inside the house. But five hours later, the infant’s body was found in a water drum within the same home. The post-mortem confirmed it was a case of murder. The biggest question now was, who killed the child inside a locked house, among her own family members? As the police investigation progressed, it began pointing towards a truth far more unsettling than any ‘ghost’ tale. Here is Crime Files Part-2. Killer inside the house ? The death of one-month-old Kinjal was no accident but a deliberate killing. Once this became clear, Inspector L.D. Mishra of Khajuri Sadak Police Station and his team faced their toughest challenge, identifying the killer. The doors of the house were shut, and there was no sign of an outsider entering or leaving. The conclusion was evident: the killer was inside the house. The police focused on the three individuals present at home during the incident: All three were interrogated separately and together. Each repeated the same thing—no stranger had entered or exited the house. Sarita said she left the child with her niece while she went to wash clothes. Sugan Bai insisted she was outside with the children. The young niece said she was lost in her play. These statements created a classic ‘locked-room mystery’. If no outsider entered, how did the child end up in the drum? Suspicion tightened, and the needle repeatedly pointed towards one person— the mother, Sarita. She was the one closest to the child, had last seen her alive, and had tried to divert the investigation by inventing the story of a ‘ghost’. Even family members began whispering. Husband Sachin and others gradually started suspecting her. Police search for motive The police widened their investigation and began probing the family’s background. It was here that the motive behind the murder slowly surfaced. Sachin and Sarita married in 2019. Life appeared normal. On 15 August 2020, when the nation celebrated Independence Day, the Mewara household welcomed a daughter—Kinjal. The child’s birth was celebrated, but beneath the surface lay a harsh truth. Sarita was unhappy with the birth of a girl Family members gave troubling statements during interrogation. Sarita’s sister-in-law, Imrat Bai, told police that Sarita was extremely unhappy about having a daughter. She desperately wanted a son. After Kinjal’s birth, she seemed emotionally shattered. “She wouldn’t even breastfeed her,” Imrat said. “We had to force her, and even then she did it reluctantly. She never bathed the child, never slept beside her. I had to look after the baby. She never showed any affection.” Neighbour Sangeeta Mewara echoed the same:“Sarita never looked at her daughter with love. She cursed the child. It felt as if she saw her as a burden.” Almost every family member gave similar statements. It became evident that Sarita rejected her baby because she wanted a son. To the police, the ‘ghost story’ now seemed like a planned cover-up. ‘Sarita did not shed a tear’ Sarita’s aunt-in-law, Sugan Bai, turned out to be the most crucial witness. She told police:“That morning, I filled the water drum. During the incident, I was outside. Only Sarita and the baby were inside. She drowned the child, closed the lid, and then came out pretending the baby was missing.” She added another disturbing detail:“When the body was taken out of the drum, the entire house was crying, but not a single tear came from Sarita. She just stood there, calm and expressionless, as if nothing had happened.” The confession Despite the testimonies, no one had actually seen the act of drowning. For a conviction, the police needed a confession. Sarita, meanwhile, kept claiming innocence in jail. She alleged that another family member had killed the baby and the family was framing her. But this façade did not last. One day, during a jail visit, when her husband Sachin questioned her repeatedly, she finally broke down. Crying, she confessed. “Yes, I put Kinjal in the drum and closed the lid. I wanted a boy, but it was a girl. Whenever I saw her face, I felt frustrated. That day no one was home, so I took the chance. I drowned her and stayed silent out of fear.” Court’s Verdict: Sarita sentenced to life imprisonment The case ran for five years in the Bhopal District Court. Sarita’s lawyer argued she was a young woman of 25, newly married, with no criminal background, and that a harsh sentence would ruin her life. They demanded leniency. The prosecution called it a brutal crime. They argued that merely having no criminal history could not justify mercy in such an inhuman act. On 27 February 2025, the 23rd Additional Sessions Judge, Atul Saxena, delivered his 104-page verdict. He convicted Sarita Mewara of murdering her one-month-old daughter and sentenced her to life imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 1,000. Judge Saxena strongly criticised the deep-rooted mindset that still values sons over daughters. He also quoted Rabindranath Tagore, writing:“Those who say that ‘when a daughter is born, it is proof that God is not displeased with humanity,’ speak the truth—because God manifests Himself through daughters.” Read first part of the Crime Files –
Newborn vanishes from locked room, mother claims spirit took her: Bhopal family turns to tantric rituals in desperate search; infant later found dead in blue drum