Mysterious death of dera follower adds twist to ‘MSG’

SANGRURDeraSachaSaudaGurmeetRahimSangrurDera follower Des Raj, a resident of Sohian Road, was spotted in an unconscious state near his home in the wee hours of Friday. He was rushed to the hospital where he died in the afternoon.While the incident may be a case of unnatural death, the victim was spotted in a long white shirt on which a message was written in bold letters with special reference to January 16 — day of scheduled release of the movie featuring the Sirsa-based dera head.“January 16 will be remembered by all forever. I am ending my life in accordance with my own will,” read the partially legible note written with a red marker on the white shirt of Des Raj.Talking to TOI, Des Raj’s son Satinder Singh, said, “When my father was spotted near our home, he was wearing a shirt on which it was written that he was committing suicide as Messenger of God film is not being released on January 16. This could not be the case. Rather, my father used to say that the movie should be released in a peaceful atmosphere. We suspect that somebody forced him to consume poison and then put this shirt on him.”The victim’s family claimed that Des Raj didn’t wear the shirt on which the note was written when he went out of home for the morning walk on Friday morning. Meanwhile, police said in the evening that the shirt is missing. However, Satinder Singh said the cops were lying and the shirt was with them.“All family members of Des Raj are the followers of the dera. His son Satinder Kumar has recorded the statement that after some of their neighbours alerted them, they spotted his father near their home early in the morning. They first rushed him to Sangrur civil hospital and then to a private hospital in Patiala where he died. Although the death is unnatural, family members didn’t name anyone as a suspect,” said deputy superintendent of police (city) G S Dhindsa.Asked about the shirt, the DSP added, “His son has recorded in the statement that when Des Raj was spotted, he was wearing a shirt on which something was written. But he claimed that he was not wearing the same shirt when he had gone for the morning walk. Since police are yet to recover that shirt, I can’t comment on what was written over it.”DSP Dhindsa said police had initiated inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the CrPC, adding that cause of death could be ascertained only after the autopsy.