Mathura, March 13 What was initially believed to be an accidental drowning turned into a case of premeditated murder in which a 17-year-old boy allegedly pushed his friends to their deaths in a pond near Nandgaon during the Lathmar Holi celebrations in February.
The incident, which was initially reported as a drowning on February 25, took a dramatic turn after technical experts retrieved footage from a damaged Digital Video Recorder (DVR) at the Asheshwar Mahadev Temple, police said on Friday.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Shlok Kumar said the victims, Saksham (15) and Ravi (17), had gone to witness the famous Lathmar Holi in Barsana along with the accused. While returning to Kosi Kalan, the trio stopped at the temple pond.
"The accused had initially informed the families that his friends had fallen into deep water and drowned while bathing. Their bodies were recovered after a midnight search operation and were cremated the following day," the SSP said.
However, the CCTV footage revealed a different story.
"The footage clearly shows the accused pushing both teenagers into the pond. He is then seen climbing up the stairs and calmly walking away from the spot," police said.
"We tried to examine the footage immediately after the incident, but the DVR was faulty. Once repaired, the retrieved data exposed the false narrative provided by the survivor," Station House Officer (SHO) Ashwini Kumar said.
Following a complaint by Saksham's father, Ramkishan, a murder case has been registered. The accused and his family have been on the run since the discovery, and police teams are conducting raids at several locations to apprehend him.
The victims were Class 11 students, while the accused is in Class 9, SHO Kumar added.