EXCLUSIVE—Bullet or Accident? What's the Truth Behind Death of Farm Laws Protesters Navreet Singh?
- 3 years ago
On 26 January, Navreet Singh - 25, a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Rampur, was killed during the tractor parade in Delhi.
Eyewitnesses of the incident claimed that he had died of a gunshot. However, Delhi police soon released CCTV footage and said that he had died in an accident when his tractor overturned.
The CCTV footage shows a tractor forcefully hitting the police barricading and turning turtle.
Navreet's close friends and family, however, dispute this claim.
They insist that he was shot.
A post mortem was done the next day, and no bullet was mentioned in this report. However, two injuries - one on the left part of his lower jaw and another above his right ear were mentioned.
The report concluded, "In my opinion, cause of death is shock and haemorrhage as a result of unknown head injury."
But the young farmer's family has refused to accept this and are claiming that he died because of a bullet injury.
They say that the two wounds mentioned in the post mortem (stated earlier) are entry and exit points of the bullet.
Asked about this, ADG of Police, Bareilly, Avinash Chandra said, "Anything sharp could have hit him."
The family alleges that the postmortem report has been made under the pressure of the government.
The family have been BJP supporters for many years, but are now enraged as no BJP leader has come to meet them.
Navreet's grandfather, Hardeep Singh Dibdiba has also alleged that the doctors who conducted the post mortem had initially assured him that it was indeed a bullet injury, but they couldn't mention it in the report because their hands are "tied."
Deputy CMO at Rampur District Hospital, Manoj Shukla has refuted the claims of the family.
When The Wire asked whether it was a bullet injury, he said, "The doctors who have written the report will be able to tell."
After The Wire's report on this matter, Rampur's District Magistrate had posted a declaration by the three doctors involved in the post mortem.
They also said that they have not given statements to the media or any individual on this matter, and they will only give a statement if required by a court.
When The Wire reached Navreet Singh's house in Dibdiba village on Saturday, his grandfather had gone to collect the X-ray reports done during the post-mortem. He said upon his return that the hospital administration has refused to share it with the family.
Speaking to The Wire, a senior doctor at AIIMS said that the X-ray reports are vital in understanding the cause of Navreet’s death.
But the family is yet to get the X-ray copy.
On Sunday, when The Wire contacted Navreet's grandfather, he said that the hospital administration has refused to give them the documents once again.
The family is now planning to knock the doors of the court.
On the other hand, several senior journalists - including The Wire's editor Siddharth Vardarajan and politicians have been booked for tweeting the allegations of the family.
The truth lies somewhere between the claims of the family and the administration. Was Navreet shot? Or did he die because of an accident?
Only an independent probe based on the X-rays and other evidence can establish what really happened.
Eyewitnesses of the incident claimed that he had died of a gunshot. However, Delhi police soon released CCTV footage and said that he had died in an accident when his tractor overturned.
The CCTV footage shows a tractor forcefully hitting the police barricading and turning turtle.
Navreet's close friends and family, however, dispute this claim.
They insist that he was shot.
A post mortem was done the next day, and no bullet was mentioned in this report. However, two injuries - one on the left part of his lower jaw and another above his right ear were mentioned.
The report concluded, "In my opinion, cause of death is shock and haemorrhage as a result of unknown head injury."
But the young farmer's family has refused to accept this and are claiming that he died because of a bullet injury.
They say that the two wounds mentioned in the post mortem (stated earlier) are entry and exit points of the bullet.
Asked about this, ADG of Police, Bareilly, Avinash Chandra said, "Anything sharp could have hit him."
The family alleges that the postmortem report has been made under the pressure of the government.
The family have been BJP supporters for many years, but are now enraged as no BJP leader has come to meet them.
Navreet's grandfather, Hardeep Singh Dibdiba has also alleged that the doctors who conducted the post mortem had initially assured him that it was indeed a bullet injury, but they couldn't mention it in the report because their hands are "tied."
Deputy CMO at Rampur District Hospital, Manoj Shukla has refuted the claims of the family.
When The Wire asked whether it was a bullet injury, he said, "The doctors who have written the report will be able to tell."
After The Wire's report on this matter, Rampur's District Magistrate had posted a declaration by the three doctors involved in the post mortem.
They also said that they have not given statements to the media or any individual on this matter, and they will only give a statement if required by a court.
When The Wire reached Navreet Singh's house in Dibdiba village on Saturday, his grandfather had gone to collect the X-ray reports done during the post-mortem. He said upon his return that the hospital administration has refused to share it with the family.
Speaking to The Wire, a senior doctor at AIIMS said that the X-ray reports are vital in understanding the cause of Navreet’s death.
But the family is yet to get the X-ray copy.
On Sunday, when The Wire contacted Navreet's grandfather, he said that the hospital administration has refused to give them the documents once again.
The family is now planning to knock the doors of the court.
On the other hand, several senior journalists - including The Wire's editor Siddharth Vardarajan and politicians have been booked for tweeting the allegations of the family.
The truth lies somewhere between the claims of the family and the administration. Was Navreet shot? Or did he die because of an accident?
Only an independent probe based on the X-rays and other evidence can establish what really happened.