The husband of a woman who died due to excessive bleeding during childbirth at their rented accommodation here has been arrested and booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, police said on Tuesday.
The husband, Sirajudheen, has also been booked for attempting to destroy the evidence by taking his deceased wife's body to his home in Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district, police said.
The husband was arrested on Monday night, it said.
Malappuram SP Vishwanadh R told reporters here that police were aware of who all were present, apart from the husband, during the childbirth and were investigating their roles in it.
Besides that, police will also investigate whether the accused and other persons were propagating that child birth at home was safe.
"Prima facie, it appears that the husband pushed for the childbirth at home," the officer said.
He further said that it was the fifth pregnancy of the victim with the first two childbirths taking place in hospitals and the remaining three, including the latest one, at home.
The officer said that the husband was a native of Alappuzha and his earnings came from his Youtube channel and religious discourses.
"They probably moved to Malappuram in connection with his profession," he said.
The woman, 35-year-old Asma, gave birth on the evening of April 5 and died due to excessive bleeding the same night, police said.
The husband then took the body to Perumbavoor on the next day, but police reached his house and moved her mortal remains to the nearby taluk hospital, the officer said.
A day ago, state Health Minister Veena George had expressed concern over the incident and described it as equivalent to a "deliberate act of murder".
She had said that while Kerala was the state with the lowest maternal and infant mortality rates, in recent times, certain negative trends have emerged in society, which were deeply concerning.
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