The BBC’s Rahul Tandon reports on a woman in India who gave her daughters away because she was too poor to give them a decent life.
Media reports in India suggested that she sold the girls for 185 rupees ($3; £2).
When I ask her if that is true, her voice rises: “I could never sell my children. I could never do such a thing. I gave them to good families where they would be well looked after.”
Purnima is now in a shelter in Bijoygunge, about 60km (37 miles) from Calcutta, and her daughters Piya (10), Supriya (eight) and Roma (four) have been reunited with her.
Even taking into account the helplessness of her situation, I find it hard to believe that this woman could just give up her children.
What? Seriously? He finds it hard to believe?
It’s common. It’s been common throughout history. Where’s he been?
Purnima is still not sure. She tells me she still feels that her daughters deserve a better life than the one she can offer.
On the drive to meet Purnima, I was convinced that no parent could ever willingly give up their child, that there must have been a financial motive behind it.
As I make my way home, I think about our conversation. The truth is, if I was in the same situation as Purnima, maybe I would have taken the same decision.
Ya think?
Sheesh. Does the phrase “foundling home” ring any bells? Never heard of the baskets left at the doors of churches? Never heard that there’s quite a lot of poverty in India?