Kerala's Shadow of Suspicion: Mysterious Child Deaths Under Scrutiny

The Kerala High Court has called for a detailed report from the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights regarding a request to form a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the suspicious deaths of 28 children between 2010 and 2023 in Palakkad district.

Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji instructed the commission to submit their findings before the next hearing on October 7. The plea was filed jointly by social activists, including a vicar from the St Augustine Syro-Malabar church, who argue the cases have been prematurely closed as suicides.

The petition asserts that these cases, involving children from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds, have been inadequately investigated. The petitioners demand government and police intervention to initiate a comprehensive investigation overseen by the court.

(With inputs from agencies.)