Pilibhit (Uttar Pradesh), Mar 10 (IANS): In a shocking incident, a 16-year-old boy died after three men allegedly pumped air through his rectum with a high-power air compressor.

This damaged his internal organs, leading to his slow and painful death over a period of two days in a hospital in Bareilly.

The three men, aged between 22 and 26 years, have been booked in Pilibhit after the boy died in a private hospital.

Two of the accused have been arrested. The motive behind the bizarre crime is yet to be ascertained.

According to a written complaint given by the boy's father, his son used to work at a rice mill.

"On March 4, when he was about to eat his lunch, three labourers identified as Amit, Suraj and Kamlesh grabbed my son. Amit and Suraj held his hands while Kamlesh pumped air in his body with the rice mill's air compressor through his rectum," the complainant said.

As the local doctors could not deal with the case, the boy was shifted to the district hospital in Pilibhit. From there, doctors referred him to a higher medical facility in Bareilly.

He died on Saturday.

Station House Officer (SHO) S.K. Singh said, "The three accused have been booked under section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder). We have taken two of the three accused in custody."