Accusing police and doctors of shielding the accused, father of a slain
Christian boy in Rajasthan, northern India, is demanding a second
postmortem of his son’s body, claiming that he was brutally killed by
Hindu fundamentalists.“They are hands in glove. Doctors spoiled the first postmortem by saying that the death happened due to drowning and the police is going by the report,” Harish Gemethi, father of the slain 7-year-old boy, told ucanews.com today.
Gemethi, who belongs to Gamidi village of Dungerpur district, reasoned that if his son, Anmol, died due to drowning then “where did the injuries on the body come from?”
“It is the handiwork of Hindu fundamentalists, one of whom is the head of a nearby village where the body of the boy was found. They had earlier also threatened us not to come to the village because of our faith,” Gemethi, who belonged to the Believers’ Church, alleged.
Anmol’s body was found floating in a river in Tardiobri village in the district on Nov. 19, two days after he went missing.
According to Gemethi, the child's face was mutilated beyond recognition. There were burn marks on his stomach, his toes were chopped off and one hand and leg were deeply slashed.
“My son’s face looked as if he had been burned up. His eyes, nose and ears were gone, and there was nothing that supported his neck. Yet, the police just refused to take any action,” he said.
However, police said that there was no communal angle to the case and it was an open and shut case of drowning.
The police also confirmed ucanews.com that they have received a fresh complaint of another postmortem Wednesday.
“Nobody was booked since police did not find any evidence against anyone but we would start investigation in to the case again from today after the fresh complaint,” Omendra Bhardwaj, Director General of Police, told ucanews.com.
He said that the injuries on the body were inflicted after the boy’s death and are those of the bites of animals in the river as the body was lying in the river for two days.
Meanwhile, a Christian NGO Catholic Secular Forum (CSF) has sent a memorandum to the president of India, prime minister, governor of Rajasthan and other leaders to ensure justice in the case.
“An appeal was made to the conscience of those concerned to direct corrective and punitive measures immediately. Only a proper investigation and the severest punishment for the killers will serve as a deterrent,” Joseph Dias, CSF head, told ucanews.com.