The police and forensic experts on Thursday exhumed the body of a Kerala spiritual man, who "attained samadhi". The exhumation came after the Kerala High Court gave the go-ahead to exhume the remains to conduct a post-mortem examination after local people alleged foul play in the death.
The controversy surrounding the death of 76-year-old spiritual figure Gopan Swamy of Neyyatinkara in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram district broke after his family put up a poster, stating he "attained Samadhi" on January 7. After relatives and neighbours filed a mass petition seeking an investigation, the police and local authorities initiated steps to exhume the remains from the tomb.
Exhumation process
When exhumed to conduct the inquest process, the body was found in a sitting position inside the concrete chamber, designed as a tomb. The remains had to begun to partially decompose, especially around the mouth area.
"The exhumation process began at 7 am and continued till 9:30 am. The slab which covered the chamber did not touch the head. The body was intact and we could identify it was Gopan Swamy though his face was slightly disfigured. Ash was smeared all over his body. The whole chamber smelt of camphor. The officials removed the body and kept it on a table," according to local councillor S Prasanna Kumar.
The state of the body was reportedly the same as Swamy's family mentioned to the police.
The body has since been moved to the Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram for the post-mortem examination. The cause of the death will be revealed only after the examination. Authorities will also conduct a DNA test to ascertain whether the remains are indeed Gopan Swamy's.
A heavy police posse was deployed near the house premises to avoid any law and order situation. The police had also banned the entry of local people into the compound. A makeshift tent was erected before the exhumation began.
However, Swamy's family objected to the move, stating that their father had "attained samadhi" and "was not dead". Tension prevailed in the area after attempts to exhume were met with protests from some religious organisations too. The family also approached the High Court seeking relief but the court did not stay the proceedings and instead questioned the family's intention in stalling the exhumation process.