On Wednesday, Omdeep, a 25-year-old Zepto delivery man, was on his way to deliver a parcel when he heard a cry, police said.
The cries led him to a nearby drain in Noida’s Sector 142, where he saw two children — a 4-year-old boy and a 3-year-old girl — inside it. After looking around for help, Omdeep, rescued both the children, police added.
On Thursday, the partner of the children’s mother, Neelam, was arrested from Noida Sector 142 Metro station for allegedly attempting to kill them.
Talking to The Indian Express, Station House Officer (SHO) of Noida’s Sector 142 police station, Vinod Kumar Mishra, said that the children were inside the drain when Omdeep spotted them.
The matter came to light after Omdeep reported the incident at the Sector 142 police station.
“Later, we found out that Neelam’s partner, Ashish (22)—employed as a security guard—had thrown them into the drain with the intention of killing them, as he did not want to keep them with him,” the SHO said.
Accused Ashish and the children’s mother, Neelam, originally hailed from the same village in Kanpur and had an affair, SHO Mishra added.
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“Neelam was married to Ashish’s cousin, and soon both of them became friends. After Neelam’s husband learned of their relationship, Ashish took her along with the two children and brought them to Noida. However, he did not want to keep the children. He hated them,” the SHO said.
On how the incident unfolded, the SHO said, “On Tuesday, Ashish took Neelam to the market and left her there before returning home. Later, he took the children and threw them into a 10-ft-deep drain in front of Paras Teyra Society, Sector 137, Noida, and fled. Both children are currently healthy,” Mishra added.
The Noida Police have registered an FIR under sections 109(1) (attempt to murder) and 93 (exposure and abandonment of a child under 12 years of age by a parent or caregiver) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Child Welfare Committee Chairman K C Virmani said the two children were healthy and were currently staying in a Noida day-care centre.
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The children will be presented before the board on Friday, he said.
“We have been informed of the incident, and we will look into it once they are presented,” he added.
