Daijiworld Media Network – Gurugram

Gurugram, Sep 7: In a bizarre twist, a family in Gurugram cremated a headless body, mistaking it for their missing kin, only to find him alive and back home the very next day.

Police said the case pertains to 47-year-old labour contractor Poojan Prasad, a resident of Mohammadpur Jharsa village, who had been missing for a week. His son Sandeep Kumar lodged a complaint on September 1. Earlier, on August 28, police had recovered a body with a severed head near an abandoned warehouse in Sector 37.

On being informed, Sandeep and other family members identified the body as that of Poojan, citing an injury mark on the right leg and the clothes he was wearing. Convinced, the family received the body, performed the last rites at Ram Bagh cremation ground, and immersed the ashes.

However, the shock came a day later when Poojan’s brother-in-law spotted him at Khandsa Chowk and brought him home. The family was left stunned to see him alive.

“This was a human error by the family of the missing person, but we are now trying to establish the identity of the deceased whose last rites were conducted,” said Inspector Shahid Ahmad, SHO of Sector 37 police station. He added that DNA samples of the body had been preserved for further investigation.

Police spokesperson Sandeep Kumar clarified that once a family identifies a body based on clothing, marks, or scars, police cannot withhold it. “Even in decomposed cases, the same procedure is followed,” he said.

A murder case has been registered and further probe is underway.