Thrissur (Kerala) |The Kerala police have taken a man and a woman into custody after the remains of two newborn babies were found, one of whom is believed to have been murdered.

The couple, who were in a relationship but not married, were taken into custody on Sunday, after the man walked into Pudukad police station here carrying a bag that he said contained the skeletal remains of two babies.

Police said the man was drunk when he arrived at the police station at 12.30 am on Sunday and claimed the babies had died in separate incidents.

Launching an investigation, the police soon took the woman into custody.

According to them, the woman told police that the first baby died naturally after its umbilical cord got wrapped around its neck during birth.

She said she buried the baby near her home and kept the remains to perform rituals.

The second baby, however, is believed to have been suffocated shortly after birth, police said.

The woman allegedly admitted to killing the newborn after it cried. She then gave the body to the man, who buried it.

"The death of the second baby is being treated as murder," said Thrissur rural police chief B Krishnakumar.

Preliminary forensic tests confirm the remains are of two infants. The pair reportedly met on Facebook in 2020 and started a relationship soon after.

Police are investigating whether the woman's family was aware of both pregnancies and the births.

The case came to light after tensions developed between the couple, including suspicions that the woman might marry someone else and concerns over a second mobile phone the man discovered she owned.

It was after this that the man approached police with the remains, bringing the case into the open.

Preliminary forensic tests confirm the remains are of two infants. The pair reportedly met on Facebook in 2020 and started a relationship soon after.

Police are investigating whether the woman's family was aware of both pregnancies and the births.

The case came to light after tensions developed between the couple, including suspicions that the woman might marry someone else and concerns over a second mobile phone the man discovered she owned.

It was after this that the man approached police with the remains, bringing the case into the open.