A 32-year-old woman in Karnataka’s Uttara Kannada has been arrested on murder charges after throwing her six-year-old son into a canal known to be inhabited by crocodiles, police said.

The incident occurred on Saturday night in Halamadi village. The woman, identified as Savitri, and her husband, Ravi Kumar (36) reportedly clashed frequently over their son Vinod's hearing and speech impairment.

Following a heated argument, police allege Savitri threw Vinod into the canal around 9 pm. The canal connects to the crocodile-infested River Kali.

Search efforts by police and fire brigade divers were hampered by darkness, and Vinod's body could not be located on Saturday night.

On Sunday morning, the search team recovered the child's body from the jaws of a crocodile, which had partially devoured his right hand. The body reportedly showed severe injuries and bite marks.

Savitri and Ravi Kumar, who work as a house help and a mason helper respectively, appeared in court and were remanded to 14-day judicial custody.

Speaking to reporters, Savitri accused her husband of mental torture and blamed him for their son's death.

"My husband is responsible. He kept saying let [Vinod] die. My husband said that all he does is eat. 'Let him be', I'd say. If my husband keeps repeating such things, how much torture could my son endure? But he kept repeatedly telling me to let the child die," she claimed.

Source: India Today