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Cop who swallowed 40 knives says he liked it
NEW DELHI: A police constable who swallowed 40 knives over two months and had them surgically removed said on Tuesday that ‘spiritual powers’ made him do it.
NEW DELHI: A police constable who swallowed 40 knives over two months and had them surgically removed said on Tuesday that ‘spiritual powers’ made him do it.
The father of two underwent a successful five-hour operation to remove the knives from his stomach in Amritsar after complaining to doctors of severe abdomen pain.
“I don’t know why I did it but there was some spiritual power behind it,” said the 42-year-old.
Certain news outlets identified the man as Surjeet Singh, who is employed with Punjab Police and is posted at Tarn Taran district.
“It started in June when I swallowed the first knife and I enjoyed the feeling. It soon became a habit,” he said.
Doctors said they initially thought he was suffering from a tumour after scans showed a large solid mass. But on further investigation, they discovered dozens of folding knives — some folded and some with exposed blades up to 18cm long. “We prepared him for surgery and removed the knives. There was bleeding as some of them were unfolded,” Rajinder Rajan, one of the surgeons at Corporate Hospital, told AFP.
Rajan said he suspected the patient, who told doctors he passed two more knives in his stools, was suffering from depression. He will undergo a psychological assessment before being discharged from the hospital, Rajan added.
Doctors did not rule out the possibility that he had pica disorder, in which the affected feels compelled to consume non-edible things.
But the man said he would not do it again. “I consumed a knife a day for about two months. I never felt it was going to harm me but when it pained, I came to the hospital. I will not repeat it. I am glad they saved my life and I want to go back to my family,” he said.
