DNA test results confirm that a baby boy claimed by nine couples following the Asian tsunami belongs to the couple who took a court battle for his custody, a court in Sri Lanka ruled today.
The finding ended weeks of uncertainty and drama surrounding "Baby 81", the infant who became a symbol of families torn apart by the December 26th tsunami.
The baby will be reunited on Wednesday with his parents Jenita and Murugupillai Jeyarajah.
"I am so happy, and I only have to thank God for giving my child back," Murugupillai, the boy's father, said. "We've got the results for all our hardships."
Nine couples originally claimed the boy in the coastal town of Kalmunai. The Jeyarajahs were the only couple to file a formal claim, but they could not document it because their records were swept away in the tsunami.
The court had ruled that the baby must stay in the hospital until DNA tests could confirm his parentage, and the family underwent the testing February 9th.
The judge unsealed the results from an envelope during a hearing attended only by lawyers today, read them aloud and then ordered the couple, hospital officials and baby to appear before the court on Wednesday.
AP