A six-year-old boy is missing after his father allegedly threw him into a swollen river following an argument with his wife. The incident happened in Himachal Pradesh in northern India on Monday night, with police still searching for the child.
Boy identified as Gagandeep
The boy, identified as Gagandeep, had been living with his father, Hitesh Kumar, while his mother was staying with her family in Amritsar with the couple's younger son. Police said Kumar had an argument with his wife over the phone before allegedly taking his six-year-old son to a bridge and throwing him into the Ravi River.
Father called police himself
The following morning, Kumar called the police emergency number himself and told officers what he had allegedly done. Police were sceptical at first and reportedly doubted whether his claims were true. However, officers went to the area and carried out inquiries before discovering that Gagandeep was missing from the rented accommodation where he had been living with his father.
Search hampered by river conditions
Kumar was then arrested and police launched a search operation to find the missing boy. But Gagandeep has still not been found. Police said the river's high water level and strong current have made the search extremely difficult, with teams continuing to look for the six-year-old. Additional Superintendent of Police Dinesh Sharma said officers were searching likely locations along the river in the hope of finding him.
Investigators are also trying to establish exactly what happened between Kumar and his wife before their argument and the alleged incident. Police have seized the mother's mobile phone and are questioning her as part of the investigation.
