Missing baby: Pinarayi Vijayan said let Anupama's parents decide

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 13 An audio conversation between a young Kerala mother, Anupama, who has been fighting to get back her child allegedly given away to adoptive parents, and CPI-M central committee member P.K. Sreemathi has revealed that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the latter that the "child controversy" should be resolved by the complainant's parents.

In the conversation that surfaced on Saturday, former State Minister of Women and Children Sreemathi said she had taken up Anupama's missing child issue with Vijayan, CPI-M State Secretary (on leave) Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and the Left Democratic Convenor A. Vijayaraghavan.

She told Anupama that Vijayan had said that they (government and party) have no role in it and let her parents decide.

Anupama said that her parents are both CPI-M members and yet the party failed to take any action.

When she asked about Sreemathi's earlier promise of taking up the issue in the party committee, the latter said that according to the rules, it is Vijayaraghavan who has to take it up first and since he did not flag it, she could not do anything.

Speaking to the media, Anupama expressed sadness that even Vijayan failed to act.

"What Vijayan fails to understand is that the Chief Minister is the chairman of the Child Welfare Committee."

She had first taken up the issue with party politburo member Brinda Karat, who in turn asked Sreemathi to look into the matter.

Since Thursday, Anupama has been on an indefinite protest before the office of the Kerala State Child Welfare Council here demanding the removal of the top office bearers and the Child Welfare Committee, who she alleged are behind handing over her baby to the adoptive parents.

Anupama claimed that all her pleas to authorities have fallen on deaf ears and there has been no further action by the Council and the Committee.

SFI activist Anupama, granddaughter of one of the topmost yesteryear CPI-M leaders in the state capital, and her husband Ajith had approached the State Police chief and the Child Welfare Committee in this regard.

The couple was forced to approach the media after their pleas to the top officials went unheard.

According to sources, the Child Welfare Committee had allegedly given away Anupama's child to an Andhra Pradesh couple for adoption last year.

Soon after the media hype, a family court in the state capital put a stop to further proceedings of formalising the adoption.