Patil may have carried pesticide from his farm

Mumbai: Narendra Patil, the son of Dhule farmer Dharma Patil (84) who died at J.J. Hospital on Sunday after consuming poison on January 22 at Mantralaya, on Thursday told the Marine Drive police that he had no knowledge about when and how his father consumed poison. In his statement given to the police, Narendra said that he did not know what his father actually consumed and exactly when he did so.

He told the police that he was unaware of the exact details. The police is awaiting the forensic report on the poison consumed by Dharma.

The Marine Drive police asked Narendra to record his statement till Thursday, following which, Narendra came to Mumbai on Wednesday and registered his statement with the police. In his statement, he said that he did not know exactly when his father, Dharma, consumed poison.

A police source said, “Till now, after taking statements of some of the persons, it seems very much possible that Dharma had carried pesticide from his farm on the day he came here. It is yet to be confirmed however at what time and place he consumed the chemical. We are still waiting for the chemical analysis report and only then can we tell what he had consumed.”

The Marine Drive police is checking CCTV footage of the sixth floor and other areas at Mantralaya to ascertain exactly where Dharma consumed the chemical on January 22 after he was unable to meet ministers over his grievances related to inadequate compensation for land for an energy project in 2012. A day after Dharma died, his family refused to accept his body till 2.30pm.

A Marine Drive police officer said, “We are investigating the people who saw him in the areas he was present to get exact details about whether he had carried any chemical or took it from someone and when he consumed it.”