Expecting Son, UP Man Kills Newborn Daughter: Why The Obsession With Male Child?

A 37-year-old man who was expecting his wife to give birth to a boy after two daughters got enraged on seeing that the third born was a girl. In a fit of rage, he took his two-day-old daughter and hurled her onto the floor of the private clinic in Pilibhit district of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday. The newborn died on the spot while his wife watched in horror.

The wife, identified as Shabbo Begham, filed an oral complaint with the police, claiming that her husband had been harassing and cursing her for giving birth to two daughters and subjecting her to cruelty. She said that the husband took the child in his arms and hurled her on the floor on Wednesday, and the baby died on the spot.

She added that the baby was suffering from some health issues, and the doctors had advised that the baby needed to be shifted to a better medical facility, but the husband refused.

UP Man Kills Newborn Daughter

Shabboo Begham was 28 years old when she married Mohammad Farhan, 32, who was working as a marginal farmer five years ago. The couple had two daughters and resided in Sirsa village, which came under Puranpur Kotwali police station.

The wife alleged that her husband hit her on the belly several times when she was pregnant and threatened to give her talaq if she gave birth to a girl baby again. Shabboo Bagham’s mother had given a written complaint, but no FIR has been filed yet. Begham claimed that the police were pressuring her to compromise with her husband and amicably settle the matter. However, she was clear that she wanted her husband punished for his crime.

The station house officer, Ashtosh Raghuvanshi, claimed that the couple had amicably resolved the matter, but Begham denied his claims. Circle Officer Sunit Dutt said that he will investigate the allegations and ensure that an FIR is filed if the woman wishes.

Why The Obsession Over Male Child?

This incident is yet another ghastly incident that displays our country’s obsession with male children. When I was pregnant, one of the things that I observed was how numerous contents about "signs you’re pregnant with a boy," "how to conceive a male child," "Do these yoga asanas and food items help conceive a male child," etc., were widely searched on the internet. What is the crazy obsession with male children?

Regardless of gender, don’t we all need a healthy baby? Times have changed, and women are becoming equally empowered as men. But unfortunately, we still come across cases of families being obsessed with male children. Daughters are still perceived as a burden to the family in patriarchal societies like ours. Parents believe that having a daughter forces them to keep protecting her because the family’s dignity lies in her chastity. Then there are the unending dowry demands that girl parents have to meet in order to marry their daughters off. So the underline is that female children bring extra expenses and responsibility, while the same doesn’t apply to male children according to our society. Is raising a child some kind of business deal?

Also, there's a notion that since daughters are given away, they cannot carry forward the family lineage. But when is society going to understand that family is built out of love and not necessarily from bloodlines? While this has been the social norm, aren’t women changing the narrative in recent times? What is it going to take for society to get over its insane obsession with male children? Is patriarchy so deeply ingrained that it can drive someone to kill a baby just because of it's gender?

Suggested Reading: Woman Tortured For Not Birthing Son Commits Suicide: Time To End Male Heir Obsession!

Views expressed by the author are their own