Search the Internet          Tips

Father surrenders 'abducted' infant in court

Arthur J Pais

Avoiding the eyes of his estranged wife and looking away from the spectators in the courtroom, Narsi Reddy Tippireddy hugged his 11-month daughter, whom he had allegedly abducted to India.

It took Sireesha Bhimavarapu a few seconds to take the little girl off his hands. She held her daughter in the air for a few brief moments and shed a tear or two.

But the domestic drama that had involved the FBI was far from over.

Could Bhimavarapu allow her in-laws visit the baby, judge Karen Tobin asked on Thursday as the day's business was ending. The mother firmly shook her head.

The drama which took place in a Chicago court room has been playing for several months.

The father, a computer software engineer on a H-1B visa, had defied the court order to return the baby to his wife early this year. He told her the baby was in India and would not be returned, according to the criminal complaint against him.

But when the FBI declared him a fugitive, he decided to change his mind about not letting his wife have the baby.

Tippireddy's parents brought the baby to the United States about a month ago, defense attorney Jeffrey Lerner said.

Even as Bhimavarapu firmly declared she did not want her in-laws to see the child, judge Tobin told the estranged couple that they should pay attention to the emotional well-being of their child.

"And that means, eventually, that neither parent should be barred from their daughter," Tobin said.

The visitation right issues could be settled during divorce proceedings.

Meanwhile, Tippireddy, who has been indicted by the grand jury on one count of child abduction, will have to appear in court on April 20 for arraignment.

Lerner has consistently denied Tippireddy had abducted the child. It was Bhimavarapu who had left her husband, he said. Tippireddy went to India because his temporary job had ended, he added.

Tippireddy had no idea he had become a fugitive, Lerner said, adding it was a story in an Indian newspaper alerted him to the new developments.

Back to top

Tell us what you think of this report