Representative image | Photo: Getty Images
Mathrubhumi News reporter Anoop Das narrates his experience of meeting the couple in Andhra Pradesh who adopted the baby that is believed to be Anupama's child.
Amaravathi (Andhra Pradesh): I boarded the train from Chennai to Andhra Pradesh after listening to the woeful cries of Anupama demanding her son back. I started the journey through the rural paths of Andhra with Lokesh who was waiting for me at the station as we had planned before.
Since there is a law that states that the identity of the parents who adopted a baby must not be made public, I do not wish to reveal any details about the parents that would point fingers at their identity. The baby is safe in a house at a village near Amaravathi.
I was unsure how the parents would receive a journalist from Kerala which is why I sought the help of a social worker and a regional journalist. They phoned the couple and talked to them. They did not agree to it at first but later did, considering how far I had travelled for this purpose. The foster-father of the baby said that we need not go inside their house and that we would meet in the path leading to their house.
As I was waiting on that path, the journalist who accompanied me pointed at the house in the distance. A man opened the gate and came outside. He accepted us with folded hands and said in a feeble voice, “Please don’t trouble us.”
“No, we understand your situation very well. We just wanted to know where the baby is and see if he is doing fine. We do not wish to cause any problems for you.” I replied.
“My wife and I are teachers. We adopted the baby after finishing all procedures as per the law. I have difficulty in revealing more about this to the media,” he said.
Had you been trying for adoption for long?
“It had been four years. Our first child died after birth. My wife had miscarriages twice after that. We decided to adopt when it became clear that it was not safe for her to conceive by natural means because her life will be at risk. We will look after the child very well. We will not spoil him but we’ll make sure that we provide him with whatever is necessary. We are most inclined to providing him good education. And we will surely do that. Once he turns five, we will move to Vijayawada where he will get better education,” he burst into tears before finishing his words.
I asked him what they had named the baby and he did not want to answer that question. The helplessness that he displayed did not make me compel him for the answer to that question. I asked him if I could see the baby once. He declined the request put forward by me at first. I tried saying that I have no camera and that I will not attempt to record or anything. Then he agreed and walked before me through the path, leading me on.
He opened the gate and stepped inside. I saw his wife standing near the baby who was sleeping in a cradle in the verandah. She invited us with worried face. The baby was sleeping. There were toys all across the long verandah. On the long rope tied across the wall, many tiny clothes were hung to dry. They talked a lot about the baby.
I asked them for a glass of water. I drank that and bid adieu to the baby’s mother. The man followed us back on our path. He was exhibiting his stern belief that they would not lose the baby as they followed all the legal procedures. He promised to meet me if he ever comes to Kerala and bade me goodbye.
“Can you tell me about the baby, please?”
Not long after the news appeared on the channel, I got a call from Thiruvananthapuram. It was Anupama, the baby’s biological mother.
“Can you tell me about the baby please?”
“Baby is doing fine,” I replied.
We talked for a while longer. She also inquired about the teacher couple with adoration. My words broke midway.
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