Kollam: In a macabre twist to the case registered over the murder of a newborn by abandoning it in a pit covered by dry leaves, the police have made a startling revelation. Arya and Greeshma, close relatives of Reshma, the mother of the newborn who is now under arrest, had posed as Ananthu, her mysterious Facebook lover, said an investigating officer.

According to Reshma, she dumped her baby immediately after birth to live with Ananthu, whom she had never met in person.

The two young women had created a fake account named ‘Ananthu’ and regularly chatted with Reshma for over 1.5 years. Reshma had over 20 Facebook accounts, according the police. Most of these were abandoned after using for few months. 

Greeshma is the niece of Vishnu, Reshma’s husband, and Arya is his sister-in-law.

As part of their efforts to identify ‘Ananthu’, the police carried out a thorough check of over 200 Facebook accounts.

Arya and Greeshma later committed suicide fearing that they would be exposed, according to the police. 

They realised the consequences of their prank only when they saw Reshma's statement on television, ACP Y Nizamudin said. She had said that her lover was not aware of the fact that she abandoned her child.

Friend's statement a major breakthrough

Greeshma had informed a friend that she was taking Reshma for a ride. The statement of Greeshma’s close friend from Paravur was a major breakthrough in the case. Before she went missing along with Arya, Greeshma last called this young man. Later, the friend tried to contact Greeshma several times but the phone was still switched off.  

Vishnu's brother's wife Arya had admitted to her mother-in-law that she was duping Reshma, a day before she disappeared.

Arya created Ananthu's account while living under the same roof as Reshma. Greeshma lived in the neighboring house.

Pregnancy & delivery without husband's knowledge

Neither Reshma's husband nor close relatives including Arya and Greeshma knew that about her pregnancy or the fact that she abandoned her child. 

The one-day-old infant was found abandoned under a heap of dry leaves at a rubber estate near Kalluvathukkal in Kollam on January 5 this year. 

After delivery, Reshma had washed the area clean, abandoned the child and returned to her sleeping husband.  She did not severe the baby's umbilical cord.

A scientific investigation led to the arrest of Reshma (22), of Pezhuvila House, Uzhaykkode, Kalluvathikkal on June 22.

The police had conducted 8 DNA tests before arriving at the conclusion that the child belonged to Reshma and Vishnu.

Arya was summoned by the police after they learned that Reshma used her phone.

 But then Arya, along with Greeshma, went missing. Both of them were found dead in the Ithikkara River the next day. They had written a note before taking the extreme step -"Never wanted to cheat anyone deliberately. Can't stand the police arresting us over the case of killing a newborn. Everyone please forgive us.”

Finding the villain
To nab the villain Ananthu, the probe team looked into 220 accounts with the name Ananthu. The list was shortened to include just three during the search carried out with the help of the cyber cell and the case began to unravel.
The police had questioned Greeshma's friend on the day the two women went missing. Greeshma last called this young man and said that they had chatted with Reshma and were summoned by the police over this. Greeshma switched off the phone after telling him not to call her. Though the youth tried to contact her again, the call did not go through.