UP court gives life sentence to man who cut open wife's stomach to check baby's gender

A court in Uttar Pradesh gave life imprisonment to a man who cut open his eight-month pregnant wife’s belly to check the gender of the fetus in September 2020. 

Accused Panna Lal, a resident of Badaun's Civil Lines, had attacked his wife Anita with a sickle to cut open his pregnant wife's stomach to check if she was going to give birth to a boy or a girl, an NDTV report said.

The couple were married for 22 years and had five daughters. Panna Lal used to fight regularly with his wife as he wanted her to give birth to a boy. 

Despite Anita's family knowing about the couple's dispute, she continued to live with Panna Lal as he threatened to divorce her and marry another woman to father a son in September 2020.

On the day of the incident also, the couple fought over the issue leading to Panna Lal threatening his wife to cut open her stomach to check if she was pregnant with a boy or a girl. 

Eight-month pregnant Anita tried to run away after she was attacked. She told the court that she was deeply injured as her intestines were left hanging from her stomach because of a deep cut inflicted by Lal.

Anita was saved by her brother, who worked at a nearby shop, and came to rescue her after he heard her screams. However, Panna Lal fled the scene.

While Anita survived the attack, her baby, a boy, could not be saved. In court, Panna Lal argued that Anita had inflicted the wounds on herself to file a false case against him as he was in a property dispute with her brothers, the report said.