A 25-year-old woman and her newborn were found dead in India after she attempted to deliver the baby herself by watching an online video on how to give birth alone.
The woman was discovered in a rented room in Gorakhpur, in north-eastern India, with her newborn full-term baby boy, and a phone lying nearby with a video playing on “how to give birth at home alone,” reports the Times of India citing local police.
The building’s landlord broke down the door after neighbors reported seeing blood flowing from her room on Monday morning. Also discovered was some scissors, a blade and some thread, according to the Hindustan Times.
Police used the woman’s phone to contact her family members who claimed the bodies following a postmortem examination. The unidentified woman had rented the room four days prior and likely chose to self-deliver out of “fear of social stigma attached to being an unmarried mother,” according to station house officer, Ravi Rai.
“We can’t reveal the woman’s name as she was 25 years old and unmarried. She had taken the room on rent in Bilandpur locality of the city just four days ago,” the police said in a statement.
It has come to light that she had been living in Gorakhpur for the past four years and was preparing for competitive exams.
Police said they are continuing to investigate the deaths, to collect phone data and locate a possible time of death, however the family have not lodged a report with the police or registered any complaint.
