I have not committed any crime: Partho De

Partho De, who holds the key to the mystery surrounding the house on Robinson Street where he spent six months with skeletons, today claimed that he has not committed any crime and is being kept 'unlawfully' at the mental hospital.

Speaking to reporters for the first time since police found the charred body of his father Arabindo De, who allegedly committed suicide, and three skeletons from the "house of death", Partho said, "I have not committed any crime. I am being unlawfully kept here (Pavlov Mental Hospital)."

"It's illegal to keep me here. They have not shown me any papers. I am a free citizen and I want to go to the Mother House... I have a lot of property in my name," the 45-year-old said from behind the closed door of the hospital this morning. Asked about the reason behind the death of his sister Debjani De (50), Partho said, "She was very religious and had been fasting for a long time which I did not like... she died of fasting."

On whether he had informed his father about the death of Debjani, Partho, who has been put up at the mental hospital since Thursday, said, "Yes, I have told my father... Probably on March 10. I have told him."

A team of senior police officers, led by DC-South Murlidhar Sharma, today visited the hospital and held a meeting with its superintendent, Dr Ganesh Prasad. Police sources said the visit was meant to question Partho in connection with the investigation into the case but they were not granted permission by the doctors looking after the patient owing to his mental and physical condition.

"Partho is not in a state, both physically and mentally, allowing him to take questions from the police. In fact, seeing the police his health condition may deteriorate," the source said. It was decided, therefore, that the doctors attending on him would try to ask questions on behalf of the police and help the probe progress.

"Maybe sometime later if doctors find Partho fit to face police, they will come for another attempt," the source said. Meanwhile, the police today sent bone samples from the skeleton, allegedly belonging to Debjani, for carbon-mapping to ascertain its age.