FARIDKOT, AUGUST 22: The family of a 19-year-old youth found dead near Government Medical College has refused to perform his last rites, alleging that he was murdered and his body dumped at the spot.
The deceased, identified as Daksh, had gone missing from his rakhi stall around 6 pm the previous day, according to his father Rajesh Kumar and one of his friends. The family searched for him through the night and contacted his friends, but failed to trace him.
A late-night phone call informed them that a body matching Daksh’s description had been found near the medical college. When the family reached the location, they found his body in a badly damaged condition.
The family has rejected the police’s preliminary suspicion that drug use may have caused the death. Rajesh Kumar said the family had never seen Daksh consuming drugs and alleged that someone had killed him and dumped his body.
“The police are attributing the death to drug use, but we have never seen our son consume drugs,” the father said, demanding that the circumstances surrounding the death be thoroughly investigated.
He also said the family would not perform the last rites until those responsible were identified and booked.
City-2 police station SHO Akalpreet Singh said police received information from a local medical hospital and sent a team to the spot, where the youth’s body was found.
Singh said preliminary information indicated that Daksh occasionally used drugs and that this could have contributed to his death. However, he said the exact cause would be known only after the postmortem examination.
“If the family has any suspicion of foul play, they are free to record their statement,” Singh said, adding that further action would be taken on the basis of the statement and the postmortem findings.
Police said further legal proceedings would follow after the postmortem report establishes the cause of death.
