The body of a 33-year-old Indian sailor was reportedly returned from Venezuela completely hollowed out, with almost all of his vital internal organs missing. Rakesh Chauhan, a seafarer from Uttar Pradesh, died in Venezuela’s Falcon state on May 7.
A post-mortem conducted in India after his body was repatriated found that his brain, heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, stomach and intestines were missing. India has sought an urgent investigation into the case.
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What happened to Rakesh Chauhan?
Chauhan died on May 7 in Punto Fijo in Venezuela‘s Falcon state. His death certificate attributed the cause of death to a heart attack.
He had spoken to his family from the ship on the morning of May 7. Only a few hours later, they received a call saying he had collapsed, lost consciousness and was in critical condition. They were later informed that he died.
His body reached India nearly two months later.
Second post-mortem raises disturbing questions
After Chauhan’s body was brought home, his family sought a second post-mortem in UP.
The autopsy found that the brain, heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, stomach and intestines were gone. Doctors concluded that the exact cause of death could not be determined because the missing organs made it impossible to establish whether there had been fatal internal injuries.
The Forward Seamen’s Union of India (FSUI), which first highlighted the case, claimed the findings were even more extensive. According to the union, the brain, heart, both lungs, kidneys, liver, spleen, pancreas, stomach, intestines, thyroid, hyoid bone, larynx and trachea were all missing, HT reported earlier.
In a statement, the union said, “Indian Seafarer Rakesh Chauhan reported dead in Venezuela. Mortal remains sent back to his hometown in Uttar Pradesh without any autopsy report or details from Venezuelan authorities. Family demanded re-autopsy. The official Post-Mortem Report conducted in India reveals a horrifying truth: NOT A SINGLE ORGAN was found in the body.”
Wife alleges murder
Chauhan’s wife, Ranjana, has alleged that her husband was murdered and accused the shipping company of withholding information.
“My husband had gone to work on a ship; he was murdered there, and his organs were removed. To this day, they haven’t given us a proper report, despite our repeated requests. They didn’t even return his personal belongings; they wouldn’t even speak to us properly; the company representatives were dismissive,” she told news agency ANI.
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She said the family had been waiting only for Chauhan’s body to return.
“We were just expecting the body to arrive. When we had a second post-mortem done here, the report revealed that not a single organ remained in the body,” she told the outlet.
“We lodged complaints everywhere, with the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi and other relevant authorities, but nothing came of it… I last spoke to him on 6 May… I think it was only two or three hours after he left for duty that my father-in-law received a call saying there had been an accident and that they were taking him to the hospital,” she told ANI.
Union points to discrepancies
The FSUI has also flagged alleged irregularities in the documents linked to Chauhan’s death.
The official receipt for the body was signed under the name “Anjana Chauraisya” instead of his wife’s actual name, Ranjana Chaurasiya, according to the union. The vessel listed on Chauhan’s employment contract did not match the actual ship he was stationed on when he died.
The body was repatriated without any local autopsy reports or official breakdowns from the Venezuelan government explaining why the organs were removed, the union claimed.
The union has asked the Indian Embassy in Venezuela and the MEA to secure the complete Venezuelan autopsy report.
India asks Venezuela to investigate
India has formally raised the matter with Venezuelan authorities and sought an urgent investigation.
External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed that India was not letting the matter slide.
“We have taken up the matter with Venezuelan authorities with a request to urgently investigate the matter,” Jaiswal said during a weekly briefing.
The Indian Embassy in Caracas also confirmed it reached out to local authorities to demand a “thorough investigation” into the “desecration and removal of organs.”
(With inputs from Rezaul H Laskar)
