Murder or suicide: three youths found hanging from tree

MITHI:

A tragic incident has shaken the desert district of Tharparkar after three young men were found hanging from the same tree in a farm field near village Sundar in the jurisdiction of Danodandal police station, Nangarparkar taluka.

The deceased were identified as 22-year-old Dhanji Kolhi, 19-year-old Shankar Kolhi, and 15-year-old Jiram Kolhi — all belonging to poor families of farm workers. Their bodies were discovered early Thursday morning after they failed to return home from work the previous night.

According to the families, the youths had gone to tend crops and did not come back by nightfall. Police shifted the bodies to Taluka Hospital Nangarparkar for post-mortem and later handed them over to the heirs. SSP Tharparkar Shoaib Memon said the incident appeared to be a suicide, though further investigation had been ordered under DSP Chachro.

However, locals and eyewitnesses expressed doubts, pointing to visible wounds and bloodstains on the victims' faces. "It doesn't look like suicide," said a villager unwilling to be named, citing fear of reprisals.

Post-mortem examiner Dr Ramesh Kumar said initial findings suggested suicide, adding that the bloodstains might have been caused by insect bites from the tree where the bodies were found. The conflicting accounts have deepened the mystery surrounding the case, as fear and silence grip the impoverished village community.