The Noida Police are now investigating if the organs of the children allegedly killed by Moninder Singh Pandher and Surender Koli were sold.
So far, the police have only recovered skeletal remains of skulls and the lower limbs. No trace of any torso has been found. Although the police had earlier ruled out the possibility of organ trade in the case, on Monday they said they were investigating that angle as well.
On Sunday, the police raided the house of Dr Naveen Chowdhury, a neighbour of Pandher's, for traces of any missing organs. Chowdhury was an accused in the Noida kidney racket of 1998 but was given a clean chit later.
"We cannot say conclusively if there is an organ-trade angle to the crime,” said Senior Superintendent of Police R.K.S. Rathore. “As of now, the motive for all these murders seems to be the perverted sex drive of the accused."
But in their remand application to the court, the police said only skulls and limbs had been recovered. "Ribs, backbone and other parts are still untraceable. Even after detailed interrogation, the accused have not disclosed
anything about these body parts,” said senior public prosecutor Ashok Kumar Sharma.
The parents of the victims have, from the start, drawn attention to the missing torsos. But the police said there was little chance of the accused being involved in removing organs, as they were not trained to do so. Medical experts said it was not necessary for the killers to have removed organs on their own. “One possible explanation for the missing torsos is that the killers could have taken them to a hospital to remove the organs,” said Dr Anoop Misra, head of Internal Medicine at Fortis Hospital.
{{/usCountry}}The parents of the victims have, from the start, drawn attention to the missing torsos. But the police said there was little chance of the accused being involved in removing organs, as they were not trained to do so. Medical experts said it was not necessary for the killers to have removed organs on their own. “One possible explanation for the missing torsos is that the killers could have taken them to a hospital to remove the organs,” said Dr Anoop Misra, head of Internal Medicine at Fortis Hospital.
{{/usCountry}}abhishek.bhalla@hindustantimes.com
sobhana.k@hindustantimes.com