A man killed his infant daughter by poisoning her as he was unhappy with the birth of a girl. The incident took place in the Indian state of Assam on Monday.

According to local reports, 38-year-old Ambiya Khatun moved to her father’s home one month back after her husband, 45-year-old Hekimuddin Sheikh, began torturing her for giving birth to four girls.

“The torture increased after Nureja, the last girl, was born. He blames me for delivering too many girls and says it's now my responsibility to bring money to feed them,” Khatun said.

On Monday morning, Sheikh arrived at her home and said he wanted to take nine-month-old Nureja and five-year-old Asmina to his home for some time. He then fed the girls iron syrup mixed with pesticide and sent them back to their mother’s home.

“When they arrived, their faces were dark and Asmina could barely walk,” Khatun recalled. She immediately rushed the girls to a nearby hospital. While Nureja was declared brought dead, Asmina remained critical. A police case was registered following which Sheikh was arrested. Investigation into the case was ongoing.

In a similar incident in the Indian city of Gurugram earlier this month, a man threw his newborn daughter into fire because he was unhappy with her birth. Sabeer, who was angry with the birth of a girl, first brutally beat his wife before throwing the 20-day-old daughter into the fire. The victims were rushed to a nearby hospital where the wife succumbed to injuries during treatment. The girl was in critical condition after sustaining 50% burns.

baby feet
Representational image of baby's feet. A father stabbed his two children in Ilford, London, before stabbing himself. Christopher Furlong/Getty Images