Cops clueless on how skeletons reached Brar mill

The case relating to the recovery of bodies of four children from the abandoned godown of former Congress MP Jagmeet Singh Brar on Tuesday...

The case relating to the recovery of bodies of four children from the abandoned godown of former Congress MP Jagmeet Singh Brar on Tuesday, turned murkier when the police were unable to explain their presence at the site. Experts said the children appeared to have been sexually abused before being strangulated. It was also not clear whether they had been murdered there or their bodies had been dumped in the godown later.

Muktsar SSP G. Nageshwar Rao on Tuesday claimed that a constable from a security team posted there had gone to urinate near the hall when he noticed a foul smell. However, the hall is at quite a distance from the rooms close to the godown gate where the policemen had decided to take rest.

Moreover, the cops had not obtained prior permission from Brar for using the godown. When confronted by The Indian Express, the SSP, said 8220;it was a routine exercise. Every time on Maghi Mela Festival the cops find some shelter like this.8221;

Strangely, some migrant labourers growing vegetables on contract near the godown, said they had not noticed anything untoward. 8220;We did not notice any foul smell emanating from the godown in the recent past,8221; said a labourer Kanhayya Lal.

Happy Khera, PA of Jagmeet Singh Brar, said earlier too they had registered cases of theft in the godown which had been lying abandoned for almost five years. With no caretaker, the godown was open to vandals.

Meanwhile, a team of experts from Chandigarh Forensic Science Laboratory CFSL today collected DNA samples from the dead bodies. The report will be out in three days. The bodies have been sent to Faridkot for post-mortem.

Police claim that the bodies have been identified as that of four children 8211; Ratna 14, Achiki 9, Satvr 12 and Puran 9 8211; who had gone missing on November 12, last year.

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8220;Blood stains on Ratna8217;s undergarments point to rape before murder,8221; Rao told The Indian Express. The undergarments worn by other children were also inside out, further supplementing the police theory.

Earlier, it was also suspected that the bodies are partially charred. The presence of some burnt matter outside the hall further corroborated this theory. However, police and few local medical experts claim the colour of bodies had changed due to 8220;decomposition8221;.

Police believe the children were strangulated. 8220;The prima facie evidence suggests that the children were strangulated,8221; Rao said, adding that pieces of cloth were found around their necks. Their hands and feet were tied when their bodies were spotted.