Man drowns son with birth defect, kills self in West Bengal

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Jalpaiguri: A tea garden labourer allegedly drowned his infant son, who was born with a complex birth defect called imperforate anus, and then hanged himself in Jalpaiguri district, police said on Monday.

Imperforate anus is a birth defect that arises due to malformation of the rectum.

The opening to the anus is missing or blocked and therefore the baby cannot pass stool normally.

It is suspected that 35-year-old Pandit Orao, a resident of Barogharia village in Mal block, failed to arrange money for a surgery to cure his son. The operation was supposed to be held later this month, police said.

Orao took his son to a nearby pond on Sunday evening, drowned him there and hanged himself from a tree beside the waterbody. His wife was in the kitchen at that time, police said.

The boy's parents were worried because of the child's disease - he used to pass stool through an opening above the navel.

Police said the two bodies were sent for post-mortem examination.