A 5-year-old boy suffering from blood cancer died after he was allegedly dipped in the Ganga river by his parents and relatives in the hope of a ‘miracle cure’ in Uttarakhand on Wednesday afternoon.
In the cruel winter in north India, the boy was submerged in the freezing river for a few minutes.
Senior police officials said that based on their investigation so far, they suspect that the boy, hailing from Delhi, was already dead when he was submerged in the water, Indian Express reported.
Also Read: Delhi: Man killed after being hit by JCB near Panchsheel Park Metro Station
The incident took place at the Har ki Pauri in the Haridwar district and a video of it shows a woman submerging the boy in the river for a few minutes before an onlooker pulls the boy out of the river, making the woman react violently. Some media reports have identified the woman as the boy’s aunt.
Another video that surfaced online shows the woman sitting on the ghat with the body and laughing and saying “Ye bacha khada hoga ye mera vachan hai, meri Ganga maiya ka vachan hai (This boy will get up. This is my promise and Ganga’s promise).”
Also Read: Four dead, eight injured in multiple-vehicle collision in Tamil Nadu’s Dharmapuri | Video
“The boy from Delhi was suffering from blood and bone cancer and was under treatment at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi. The doctors there said that the boy could not be saved and as the last option, the family brought him to Ganga ji, hoping for a miracle. However, it appears that the boy was already dead when he was brought here. We are waiting for the postmortem report and will take necessary action based on that,” said Haridwar Additional SP Swatantra Singh, Indian Express reported.
According to police officials, the family members were questioned and as they were in deep shock, they were not detained as yet. During questioning, the driver hired by the family from Delhi also claimed that the boy had probably died on the way.