Mother drowns 8-month-old baby in washing machine

A 40-yer-old mother drowned her eight-month-old baby son in a washing machine at her home at Cherthala near here and surrendered before the police Wednesday evening.

The woman, Suma (40), said to be under treatment of a psychiatrist for the last few months, turned up on her own at the women's cell of the Town police station here and confessed to the crime she committed, police said.

Suma told police that she killed the child when her husband John was away at his work place and she had told her elder daughter to go to her grandparent's home after the school hours as she would be spending some time in the church.

The body of the baby, found floating on the water, was taken out from the washing machine by police after breaking open the locked house. The neighbours said Suma had always kept aloof from them and there were rumours that she had attempted to commit suicide by cutting nerves on her hand a few months back.

Police said she would be produced before the magistrate later in the day.