Guwahati, Aug 19 (IANS): A 35-year-old man allegedly tried to sell his 11-day-old daughter to a couple for Rs 4 lakhs but was unsuccessful and instead allegedly killed and buried the infant, police said on Saturday.

The individual has been identified as Niranjan Malakar, a resident of Dubi Malipara locality in Assam’s Bajali district. His family reported him missing together with his infant on Friday night.

On Saturday morning, Niranjan reportedly called his brother-in-law to inform him that the baby had passed away and also revealed where the body was buried.

When the family members arrived at the scene, a team of police officers and district administration representatives exhumed the body from a location close to the Bisannala River, according to the police.

Siddhartha Kumar Buragohain, the superintendent of police for the Bajali district, told IANS that the initial inquiry revealed that the father had killed the child and buried the body.

"The dead body was dug up and sent for a post-mortem examination. We are attempting to find the accused, who has fled," he said.

The family members claimed Nilanjan with assistance of a doctor Diganta Choudhury, attempted to sell the child from the hospital after the birth. However, they were unsuccessful, and the infant was safely delivered home.

"They tried to take the baby away a day after the birth, but we stopped them. Later, Niranjan revealed to us that he had obtained Rs 4 lakh from a wealthy couple with Choudhury's assistance,” the family members told the media.

The family members claimed that Nilanjan was putting pressure on them to allow him to close the deal because there were issues at home as a result of his failure to sell the baby.

"Niranjan said that he has taken the payment and must give child to the couple. Even the doctor made an effort to persuade us,” they said.

The authorities are attempting to track down the suspected doctor and the accused Niranjan.