Five-year-old tortured by father in Chennai

A malnourished five-year-old boy in Chennai was allegedly abused by his father. He was confined in a kitchen and regularly beaten because his father, who worked as a lawyer's clerk, allegedly could not stand his son's resemblance to his estranged wife.

Police rescued him after a neighbour called a child rescue helpline.

"There's nothing but just skeleton inside his body. He's not even able to stand on his own," said C Sridevi, coordinator, Childline.

The father and two aunts who stayed in the same house have been arrested and charged with cruelty and attempt to murder.

"Preliminary enquiry reveals that he has harassed him both physically and emotionally," said Kannabiran, AC, T Nagar.

While it's the physical torture that has exposed this case, activists say the more common mental torture by many parents seldom gets reported.