India Kerala infant parasailing
Eleven-month-old Niya Nisam was made to parasail solo by her parents who now face charges of child rights violation. YouTube Still

Ignoring her loud wails, parents of an 11-month-old baby girl made her perform a solo parasailing stunt at Muzhappilangad beach in the southern Indian state of Kerala.

The parents' tasteless bravado has landed them in trouble, and they will now be tried, along with the organisers of the parasailing event, under the Juvenile Justice Act.

The district police chief, PN Unnirajan, who was present at the event said that the parents would be dealt with severely.

"When I was asked to flag off (the event), I refused, saying that making a child to parasail alone is against the rules. But they said that one of the parents will accompany her. I believed them and left the place before it began," Unnirajan told the Times News Network.

The parasailing event was organised by an adventure sports and tourism organisation, Malabar Aero Sports Society (MASS). The infant, Niya Nisam, who was forced into doing the stunt is the granddaughter of the general secretary of MASS, Safar Ahmed.

Baby Niya's mother Safreena Nisam had parasailed solo at the age of eight in 1995, and at present is undergoing training for a commercial pilot's licence.

MASS said the event was intended to popularise the sport, by making a baby set a record by parasailing solo.

"Probably Niya is the youngest solo para-sailor in the country. It was sad that our bold, successful move was misinterpreted," Ahmed said.

MASS claimed that the child was "trained", an assertion ridiculed by doctors.

"It's not age-appropriate learning. An 11-month-old cannot learn parasailing," said Dr Sachidananda Kamath, state president of the Indian Academy of Paediatrics.

Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights took a suo moto case of the incident and said that this was in violation of the Child Rights Convention.

Ahmad was asked if he worried about flouting any rules, to which he replied that "there is no prescribed age limit for this event in India. Further, the parents of the little girl had given their consent and signed the indemnity bond."

MASS used the absence of any rules on age limit for adventure sports in India, to organise a mindless venture. However, the state's Human Rights Commission was not impressed by the argument and voiced its concern over the issue.

"What is alarming is that there are no norms and guidelines fixed for such adventure sports," DIG Sreejith Chief Investigation Officer at the Commission said.