The body of a three-month-old girl has been exhumed in Madhya Pradesh's Shahdol district following her death after allegedly being branded with a hot iron rod more than 50 times by an exorcist, an official said on Saturday.
District Collector Vandana Vaidya said the baby's body was exhumed on Friday and a post-mortem will be conducted on Saturday.
Initial investigation has shown that she died due to pneumonia but the real reasons behind the death could be known after the post-mortem report, she said.
The child's mother, a resident of Kathotia under Sinhpur police station limits in the tribal-dominated district, said her family first took her ailing daughter to a quack but her condition didn't improve.
The family then approached a woman faith healer who poked the child's body with a hot iron rod 51 times in a bid to treat her, the mother said.
However, the baby's condition deteriorated and she was taken to the district hospital, which referred her to Shahdol Medical College. The baby died during treatment on Wednesday, she said.
The family members then buried the child's body. After learning about the incident from local media, the government decided to exhume the body.
Wheat Production In Madhya Pradesh Declines Over Last Five Years Almost 5,000 Pending Cases of Rape Of Minors In Madhya Pradesh, Accused Out On Bail Rs 9.25 Lakh: Madhya Pradesh Government's Air Travel Cost Per Day Video: Rahul Gandhi Approaches BJP MP Who Fell During Protest, This Happens Protests At Parliament Turn Into Injury vs Injury Claims By BJP, Congress Ambedkar Row: Congress Doubles Down After BJP's Soros Edit Of Protest Pic Elon Musk Urges X Users To Stop Using Hashtags. Here's Why "Not In His Nature To Be Nasty": Omar Abdullah Defends Rahul Gandhi People Seeking Justice For Atul Subhash Chase Rahul Gandhi. He Does This Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.