Young Mother Burns Twin Infants Alive After Dispute in Uttar Pradesh

A young mother in a quiet village in Uttar Pradesh’s Banda district committed an unthinkable act that has left her community shattered. On a Sunday evening, 22-year-old Pooja allegedly flung her 45-day-old twin daughters into the roaring flames of the household fireplace, killing both infants. The horror unfolded after a bitter argument with her husband.

Pooja had been insisting on visiting her parents’ home. Her husband, Munnalal, tried to calm the situation, but the dispute spiraled out of control. Witnesses say that in a surge of uncontrollable fury, Pooja snatched up her newborn girls—both lying nearby—and hurled them directly into the fire. The babies’ frantic screams brought Munnalal and other family members rushing to the scene. They frantically pulled the tiny bodies from the blaze, but the damage was catastrophic. The infants were raced to a medical facility, where doctors could do nothing. Both were declared dead upon arrival, their fragile bodies too severely burned to survive.

Senior police officer Shivaji Singh confirmed that officers were immediately dispatched after the family filed a complaint. Pooja was taken into custody and, during initial questioning, admitted to the act. She told investigators she was consumed by rage and did not grasp the consequences. Police charged her with murder under the Indian Penal Code. While authorities noted she appeared distressed, they emphasized that no emotional state could excuse the deliberate killing of two innocent babies.

The village of Palhari is struggling to process the tragedy. Neighbors described Pooja as a reserved and generally quiet woman who had welcomed the twins after several years of marriage. Some relatives quietly wondered if she had been enduring undiagnosed postpartum depression, a condition rarely discussed or treated in the region. The twins’ bodies were sent for a post-mortem examination as the investigation continues.

Behind the stark facts of a young woman, two babies, and a fire lies a deeper, haunting void: a total absence of mental health support in rural communities. For now, the image of those helpless infants, their lives extinguished in a fit of anger and anguish, will remain seared into the memory of everyone who loved them.