Her children ‘mauled to death by dogs’, a mother grapples with ‘what ifs’

The 30-year-old, a single mother, and her three sons — Ansh, 9, Anand, 7, and Aditya, 5 — had moved to Sindhi Basti in south-west Delhi’s Ruchi Vihar six months ago. In two seemingly unrelated incidents that happened on March 10 and 12, she lost her two sons in attacks, allegedly by stray dogs near the basti. After the deaths of her two sons, she sent her eldest, 9-year-old Ansh, to her mother’s house in Meja tehsil of Prayagraj district in Uttar Pradesh.

Sushma Kumari, a 30-year-old single mother, and her three sons — Ansh, 9, Anand, 7, and Aditya, 5 — had moved to Sindhi Basti in south-west Delhi’s Ruchi Vihar just six months before Anand and Aditya died in separate incidents in March. (Special Arrangement)

Sushma now lives all alone in her two-room house, one of the few pucca houses in Sindhi Basti. The area, which has an estimated cluster of about 200 homes, lies near Vasant Kunj’s Delhi Development Authority (DDA) flats.

“Each day I recall the little things about Anand and Aditya — the pichkaris they bought for Holi, their school books, the YouTube videos they would constantly watch, Aditya’s loud voice and how he could memorise routes, names and places at the drop of a hat … Anand was quiet, good at studies and close to his elders. He would tag along with me wherever I went…I don’t know why this happened to them,” she adds.

While the autopsy reports of the boys revealed the provisional cause of death as “canine bite injuries”, questions have been raised over the cause of their deaths. Sushma says, “Their bodies did not have grievous injuries. I think their deaths should have been investigated by the CBI.”

The sequence of events

Recalling the sequence of events of March 10, Sushma says, “It was two days after Holi. Anand and his brothers were snacking on gujiyas. His aunt (who lives nearby) had called him to her place, about 500 metres away, to help her with some work. As he was leaving home around 9.30 am, Anand told me that he would be back soon. He told me to keep some pyaaz ke pakode and chutney aside for him. When he didn’t return by 11:30 am, I called his aunt. She said Anand had not turned up. I immediately went looking for him but could not find him.”

Sushma adds that she called the police around 2 pm. “A few police officers came and started looking for him but even they could not find him. At 5 pm, a huge team from Vasant Kunj South police station turned up. They started looking for Anand in nearby areas. Someone spotted one of Anand’s slippers about 40-50 metres from our house. When they searched the area carefully, they found his body.”

Sushma Kumari currently lives alone in her two-room house, one of the few pucca houses in the area, in Sindhi Basti in south-west Delhi’s Ruchi Vihar. Since the deaths of her sons in March, she has sent her eldest son, 9-year-old Ansh, to her mother’s house in Meja tehsil of Prayagraj district in Uttar Pradesh. (Express photo/Vidhatri Rao)

The seven-year-old was found near a wall inside a secluded but vacant plot in the area. He had injuries marks — bite and scratch marks on his legs, waist, hips, neck and back.

Anand’s body was sent to Safdarjung Hospital for an autopsy. Two days after the incident, on March 12, Sushma and some family members were supposed to go to the hospital to collect his body. However, before she could leave for the hospital, she was dealt with another crushing blow.

Around 8.30 am, just like all other children in Sindhi Basti, 5-year-old Aditya went to relieve himself in the jungle area close to his home. Like many other houses in the basti, his house too does not have a washroom. He was accompanied by his 24-year-old cousin, Chandan.

A police officer had told The Indian Express earlier, “Chandan was relieving himself at some distance from Aditya. After some time, Chandan went back to the spot where he had left Aditya. He found the boy surrounded by stray dogs. Aditya was badly injured. Sub-inspector Mahender of Vasant Kunj South police station was in the area investigating Anand’s death. He heard their scream and saw that dogs had attacked Aditya. He rushed the boy to the Indian Spinal Injuries Centre in his car, but he died during treatment.”

Sushma recalls seeing her youngest son’s body. “He was wounded. He had similar scratch marks on his neck and stomach…” she says.

Sushma Kumari has still kept some toys belonging to Anand and Aditya, including the pichkaris they bought for Holi. (Express photo/Vidhatri Rao)

Sushma says, “I have lived in Delhi for the last 10 years. My husband and I are estranged. He is back in our village, Khajuri (in Karchhana taluk of Prayagraj). I had a fixed routine with the children: I would send them to school and then leave for work at a salon in Vasant Kunj. I provided home services for the salon’s clients. The boys would play in the basti till I came home around 6 pm. I was alone but my sons were good children. They always helped me out…”

Sushma’s sister and other relatives live in Mahipalpur, which is about 3 km away. She says they visit her frequently. Sushma says many from her family have migrated to Delhi over the years from Prayagraj district.

A sense of fear

Since the death of her sons, there is a sense of fear among the residents. They claim that these deaths due to dog attacks are the first occurrence in the area as far back as they can recall.

Sindhi Basti-based couple Shiva and Nisha, who sell shoes and dolls respectively in Vasant Kunj, have four kids aged between 2 to 8. They said, “The kids stay at home while we are at work. They usually leave the house to relieve themselves in the open but we have told them not to step out when we are not around. ”

Sushma’s neighbour Lakhan, who repairs shoes, says, “I have six kids. They take lessons with an NGO that conducts daily classes here in the basti. My children have always roamed around the basti and even played with the strays here. I have lived here for 30 years. There used to be around 10-15 dogs but they’re all gone now.”

Sandeep, 29, who is also Sushma’s neighbour, claimed there were a few incidents of dog bites over the last few months. “There was a lot of fear in the basti after the incidents but things are more or less back to normal now. However, we tell the children to stay away from the spots where the incidents happened,” he says.