Couple demands transfer of probe into son's murder

Mumbai: A couple has filed a petition in the Bombay high court seeking transfer of the investigation into their seven-year-old son’s murder from Tulinj police station in Nalasopara to the Thane crime branch after the accused got bail and allegedly threatened the mother of the deceased. The accused had allegedly poured petrol on the boy and set him on fire due to a quarrel over the goats owned by the family of the deceased.

“The petition has been filed in the high court and it would be heard in due course,” said the petitioner’s lawyer Asif Naqvi.

Advocate Naqvi said that on December 15, 2018, the mother Samuja Qureshi came to know that her son Faizan had suffered burn injuries and she rushed him to Nair hospital situated at Mumbai Central. Initially, Samuja and her husband Izhar were not aware how Faizan suffered the burn injuries. On December 17, Faizan regained consciousness and in his statement to the Agripada police, said that their neighbours allegedly poured petrol on him and set him on fire. Later, on January 5, 2019 Faizan succumbed to his injuries at Nair hospital and Tulinj police station arrested Alok Shrivastava and Akash Shrivastava on charges of murder. However, the sessions court in Vasai granted them bail on January 16.

The parents have claimed that they don’t have faith in the Tulinj police because first, they took considerable time to lodge a FIR and later, they strongly suspected that the police was not probing the case properly as it was not prompt about collecting the CCTV footage of the spot or mobile locations of the accused.

The petitioners have requested the court to transfer the probe to the Thane CB and also monitor the investigation, direct police to collect CCTV footage of the spot, and also call reports from Agripada and Tulinj police stations. They have also sought cancellation of bail of the accused.