MP: Probe ordered as Indore police station blames rats for missing viscera samples

The Indore police in Madhya Pradesh on Friday ordered a probe after a few viscera samples went missing from a police station, with its staff claiming that the internal organs were eaten away by rats, an official said.

Viscera comprises body parts like the lungs, heart, and the organs of the digestive, excretory, and reproductive systems. Viscera samples are preserved in many murder and unnatural death cases where autopsy findings might not be conclusive.

“We got information that a few viscera samples kept at Vijay Nagar police station have gone missing. We were told (by the staff) that they have been eaten away by rats,” Deputy Commissioner of Police Sampat Upadhyay told PTI.

An additional commissioner of police has been asked to probe the missing viscera case, said the DCP. The samples had been preserved in a salt solution in plastic containers, he said. “So it is possible for the rats to damage it (containers). However, a conclusion will be drawn only after a thorough probe,” said the official.