Delhi starvation deaths: Evidence sent to forensic lab to rule out poisoning

Maintaining that the items were picked up as evidence in the case, Delhi police said the forensic examination would help ascertain if the parents of the three girls had been giving them any medicine or poison over a period of time that eventually claimed their lives.

Almost a week after three sisters allegedly died of starvation in east Delhi’s Mandawali, the police on Sunday said they have sent the utensils, medicines, syrup bottles, pesticide, kerosene and cups recovered from their house to the forensic laboratory for examination.

The corridor of the building where three girls used to stay with their parents in Delhi’s Mandawali area. The three were declared brought dead at a city hospital on July 24, 2018 and autopsy reports confirmed they died of starvattion. (Sonu Mehta/HT PHOTO)

Maintaining that the items were picked up as evidence in the case, police said the forensic examination would help ascertain if the parents of Mansi (8), Shikha (4) and Parul (2), had been giving them any medicine or poison over a period of time that eventually claimed their lives.

“The forensic experts will examine the utensils and find out whether there are traces of poison in them. The experts wash utensils with solvent and check for traces of poison on them. Even if the utensils are washed several times over a period of three-four days, forensic experts can easily find traces of poison in them,” said a police officer associated with the probe.

Although two autopsy reports of the dead children have confirmed that they died of starvation, the investigating team is trying to rule out the possibility of poisoning and foul play. A preliminary magisterial enquiry has suggested that the girls had consumed some food and might have been fed some ‘unknown medicine’.

Meanwhile, police said they are yet to locate father of the three sisters, Mangal Singh, who went missing on Tuesday morning, the day when the three were declared brought dead at a city hospital. However, the police team that was sent to Midnapore in West Bengal to track down the father on Sunday located his village and identified the house, where his family members live. “The team members will interact with Mangal Singh’s family members, relatives and villagers to know about his whereabouts,” said Pankaj Singh, deputy commissioner of police (East).