A day after the family of a lynch victim charged that kidney racket was behind the killing, the police continued to ignore the claim and instead, branded the victim as “mentally ill.”

Even before the police established any contact with the family of the victim Kalu Ram, City Police Commissioner T Suneel Kumar announced that the deceased was mentally ill and was killed because “he was roaming around the area suspiciously.”

“Kalu Ram was a tile-laying worker. He was roaming around the area suspiciously and people thought that he was a child kidnapper and lynched him. There is no kidney racket behind it, but if his family files a complaint in this regard, the police will investigate that angle, too,” said Kumar.

The police have neither established where Ram stayed in the city nor traced his sim card. Despite publication of the details of a kidney racket by DH, the police are yet to take the family’s version seriously.

DH contacted Kalu Ram’s brother Sona Ram, a native of Nimaj village in Rajasthan’s Pali district. He said his brother repeatedly told him about some criminals confining him and trying to take his kidneys. A day before he was lynched, Kalu, in fact, had told his brother that “it may well be his last call.”

Kalu’s cousin and neighbour in Nimaj, Pradeep Ram, expressed anguish over the investigation and asked how can the police downplay the alleged involvement of a kidney racket. “It was a brutal attack by the people of Karnataka and police are not even bothered to investigate it properly,” he said.

Deccan Herald contacted KaluRam’s brother Sona Ram, a native of Nimaj village in Rajasthan’s Pali district. He said his brother repeatedlytoldhimaboutsomecriminals
confining him and trying to take his kidneys. A day before he was lynched, Kalu, in fact, had told his brother that “it may well be his last call.”

Kalu’s cousin and neighbour in Nimaj, Pradeep Ram, expressed anguish over the investigation and asked how can the police downplay the alleged involvement of a kidney racket. “It was a brutal attack by the people of Karnataka and police are not even bothered to investigate it properly,” hesaid.
“At present, our concern is to complete his last rites of Kalu. If the Karnataka government and the police take this issue lightly, people of Rajasthan are going to protest in a big
way,” he added. When asked about the allegation, a senior police official privy to investigation expressed ignorance.

The police were still busy tracing the whereabouts of Kalu Ram in the last few months. DCP (West) Ravi D Channannavar said the police were yet to identify the place or with
whom he was staying. “We are trying to find out the cause behind the incident, who caught him first, and under what suspicion,” he said. He added that he was not aware of the kidney
racket allegation. “If his family members have such doubts, they can approach the police, and we will investigate it. At present, we are only investigating the case on the prima facie evidence of the videofootage. All the 16 accused who have been arrested, say that the mob was already beating him, and they just joined,”Channannavar said.
One of the doctors at Victoria hospital who conducted the autopsy on Kalu’s body, said his entire body was full of wounds and the liver was damaged. There were injuries to the head and bones, besides broken ribs. “There were no old injuries,” the doctor told DH.