Kozhikode: Police have intensified a re-probe into the death of an SSLC student, who was found hanging in his residence at Narikkattery in Nadapuram on May 17, 2020.
The death of Abdul Azeez, 15, was earlier investigated twice and concluded as a case of suicide, but a re-investigation was launched after a recently circulated video clip suggested foul play.
The body was laid to rest after a post-mortem examination. After the police had closed the case, the local residents formed an all-party action council demanding a detailed probe.
The district Crime Branch, which took over the case from local police, also found it to be a case of suicide.
Police have now confirmed that the video is original. Deputy Superintendent of Police, probing the case, will record the statements of the action council members. The council has been arguing that the boy, a studious student, had no reason to take the extreme step.
The action council demanded a re-probe after the recent video clip purportedly showed Safwan, Azeez's brother, brutally assaulting the boy in their residence. Based on the demand and the video clip, Superintendent of Police (rural) Dr A Srinivas ordered further probe into the incident.
Investigators are now aiming to complete the probe within a week. Police had initially questioned a few of Azeez's relatives. Police are contemplating to issue a search notice against Safwan, currently in the Middle East.
The investigation is mainly trying to find answers to the following questions:
• When was Azeez assaulted? Was it on the same of day of his death?
• Who recorded the video?
• What happened after the video was recorded?
• Where was the video clip all this while?
• Why was it made public now?
• Was anyone else in Azeez's family aware of the assault?
• Investigators expressed belief that answers to these questions could unravel the mystery surrounding the boy's death.
Azeez's neighbours have raised a few doubts over the unnatural death:
• The family said Azeez used tied the belt of a sewing machine to a hook on the ceiling to hang himself. By the time the neighbours reached the house, the body had been shifted to a hospital.
• Investigators ignored the local residents' statement that the boy was frequently assaulted by his brother and other family members.
• Police made a prejudiced approach and wrote the death off as a suicide despite knowing that the family was problematic.
• The video clip showed Safwan strangling the boy with his hands. The teen was seen falling to the ground apparently unconscious, or as if he is dead.
• The family refused the neighbours access to the post-mortem report. This prevented the local residents from seeking legal advice.
Efforts are now on to get a copy of the autopsy report from the medical college hospital. An action council leader Soopy Narikkattery said the probe was flawed from the beginning itself. Both the local police and the district Crime Branch failed in conducting a thorough probe. The council had asked the police superintendent not to hand over the case to the same team, but demanded a probe by the State Crime Branch.
Soopy Narikkattery said the senior police officer had promised that the previous investigators have been transferred and the probe would be completed in a week.
(Suicide is not a solution to any problem. Seek the help of psychiatrist, if needed. Helpline numbers: 1056, 0471- 2552056)
