Telangana couple booked for torturing sons with heated ladles, cigarettes

Follow TNM’s WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.A couple in Telangana has been booked for allegedly torturing their two sons, aged three and five. Ravi Nakarekanti and Indu, residents of Huzurnagar in Suryapet district, were charged after child welfare officials found that the children had allegedly been branded with heated ladles and cigarettes, while the three-year-old had suffered a fracture in his left hand.Nirmala Somu, Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) supervisor for Huzurnagar, stated in her complaint to the Huzurnagar police that she had received information about the alleged child abuse from local residents. On Thursday, July 9, Nirmala visited the family’s home along with officials from the District Child Protection Unit (DCPU) and Childline.There, she said, they found that Dhanush (5) and Hemanth (3) were being subjected to abuse by Ravi and Indu. Speaking to the media, Indu said that Dhanush is Ravi’s stepson, while Hemanth is his biological son.“From the last few days, the children had been subjected to branding with heated ladles and burns from cigarettes. Their bodies bore scratched marks and burn wounds and Hemanth’s left hand was broken. They were also subjected to mental harassment,” Nirmala said in her complaint. Police booked Ravi and Indu under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for voluntarily causing hurt, as well as under Section 75 (punishment for cruelty to a child) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act.A doctor treating the children told local media that they had suffered multiple injuries, some of which appeared to be at least a couple of weeks old. The children also had cigarette burn marks and abrasions consistent with being beaten with a belt or by hand. They also appeared to be malnourished, the doctor said.