The Bhutanese Leading the way.
A 30-year-old woman who was detained by the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) in Wangdue Phodrang for accidently suffocating her two-week-old baby in her drunken state on August 18 has been granted bail by the Wangdue Phodrang District Court.
The bail amount was paid by Sher Maya Gurung, 26, who took care of the baby while the mother was detained under police custody.
The mother is currently staying with Sher Maya Gurung and the case has been forwarded to the court by the police for further proceedings.
Police learnt of the case through a shopkeeper whose shop is located in front of the woman’s house and had witnessed the whole act at the taxi parking on August 18.
The eyewitness saw the mother lying on the ground in a drunken state with the baby underneath her.
It had been just two to three months before she moved to Wangdue Phodrang from Lobeysa.
In an earlier interview, Sher May Gurung said, “She does not feed the baby in time and we could hear the baby crying for a long time and the mother won’t be bothered.”
It is also learnt that the mother had once come looking for a job in the hotel which Sher Maya Gurung owns. However, she said she could not give her a job because she was drunk when she came in looking for a job, eight months ago.
The father of the child is not known. Sher Maya Gurung also said no proper care has been taken of the baby since its birth. She added that the baby has received no attention and care.
The section 223 of Penal Code of Bhutan 2004 reads that a defendant shall be guilty of an offence of a child, if the defendant engages in a conduct that would injure the physical or mental condition of a child.
The grading of endangerment of a child as per the section 224 shall be (a) a petty misdemeanor or (b) a misdemeanor, if aggravated circumstance is present.
