New Delhi, Apr 11 (IANS): With battered three-month-old baby Afreen succumbing to her injuries in Bangalore Wednesday, India's child rights watchdog said her father should be booked for murder.

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) chairperson Shantha Sinha said speedy action should be taken against her father, Umar Farook, who allegedly tortured the infant as he wanted a son.

"The father of the baby has committed a murder and there should be a strict charge against him. A murder case should be booked against him and it has to be done in a speedy manner," Sinha said.

Arfeen passed away at 11.10 a.m. Wednesday. She had been battling for life in a Bangalore hospital, where she was admitted with a severely injured head, bite marks on several parts of the body and some burn injuries Sunday. Her mother Reshma Bhanu has alleged that Afreen's father had tortured her as he was angry over having a daughter and not a son.

"The chargesheet on the father has to be framed for murdering and killing this child and at the same time we should be looking at how difficult is life for girls in the country. There should be strong vigilance for every girl child and mother like Reshma Bhanu. We should make sure that a child should not suffer violence and brutality," Sinha told a news channel.

Sinha also said police must take crime and violence against girls seriously.