Thiruvananthapuram: The mystery over the death of three Keralites in a hotel in Arunachal Pradesh is getting deeper every day. In the latest development in the case, the police noticed that two of the victims, Naveen Thomas and his wife Devi, had searched the internet for extraterrestrial life. This fact was revealed when the police checked the laptops found at their house.
The couple had also downloaded two books running into 500 and 1,000 pages dealing with life on planets where humans were supposed to reach after their death on Earth.
The bodies of Ayurveda doctors Naveen and Devi and their school teacher friend Arya B Nair were found in a hotel room at Ziro, a remote and picturesque town in the border state the other day.
“We are investigating whether any other person or social media group engaged in seeking the afterlife was involved in the deaths. The advice of psychiatrists also will be sought,” said a top police officer.
At the same time, the police had recovered a note from the hotel room signed by the trio which said that no one else was responsible for their deaths. The note added that they had no financial liabilities.
An officer with the Arunachal Pradesh police said that the trio was suspected to have taken anticoagulants, as such medicines were noticed in the hotel room.
Arya had posed as Naveen and Devi’s daughter when they checked into the hotel. The autopsy has been completed and their bodies will be taken in an ambulance by road from Arunachal Pradesh to Guwahati, to be flown to Thiruvananthapuram via Kolkata on Thursday.
On Wednesday, the police discovered the car in which the trio had travelled to Thiruvananthapuram airport, at the parking area of the domestic terminal.
Weak law against superstitions
Meanwhile, it is pointed out that Kerala lacks a strong law against superstitions and illegal practices in the guise of tradition, even when financial fraud and heinous crimes such as human sacrifice were taking place regularly in the state.
Incidentally, the state government had prepared the draft of a bill to curb fraud and crimes related to superstition following the shocking human sacrifice case at Elanthoor in Pathanamthitta district.
However, some ministers reportedly demanded at a Cabinet meeting that the bill needs to be examined further as some of the proposals could affect certain religious rituals. Subsequently, in July last year, the Chief Minister issued instructions to withdraw the bill for more discussions and inspections. However, no procedures have been carried out in this regard so far.
