A JUDGE AT THE OLD Bailey in London has sentenced a mother to seven years in prison for killing her 12-year-old son in February 2010 by making him drink bleach.

The court heard that Satpal Kaur Singh, 44, was suffering from mental health problems and struggling to care for her son Ajit, who had autism, the PA reports.

Despite her health problems being recognised by neighbours, teachers and social services, Singh was “allowed to resist help”, according to counsel for the defence, David Hislop.

She had met with social services on the day she killed her son to discuss his care, but had refused their assistance.

After making her son drink a cup of Domestos, Singh also drank the bleach. She then called the emergency services and said she had murdered her son and tried to kill herself, according to the BBC.

The judge said he recognised how difficult it was to care for Ajit. He told Singh:

Your deteriorating mental health robbed you of proper insight into what was going wrong and erected real obstacles between you and people and the agencies that were trying so hard to help you.

However, he said her actions had been taken with no consideration for her son’s interests.