Kerala Sahayak's death: Widow of soldier demands justice

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The widow of a 33-year-old soldier from Kerala who was reported missing from a cantonment in Maharashtra and later found dead in an abandoned barrack, has demanded justice.

The soldier, Lance Naik Roy Mathew, 33, had been reported missing since February 25 and his decomposed body was found hanging from the ceiling of the abandoned barrack in Deolali Cantonment, Nashik.

"I want justice and I want to know what happened to my husband," Finy, Mathew's wife, said on Saturday at the Thiruvananthapuram airport where his body arrived earlier in the morning.

A relative said: "He was a jawan and served the country for 14 years. The entire episode seems to be mysterious and no one knows what has happened to him. And even after the body arrived, the convention is to immediately drape the coffin in the Indian Tri-colour and that too did not take place."

The relative approached the district collector seeking permission for a re-post mortem.

"The request came today (Saturday) morning and soon the sanction was given for it. The re-post mortem will be conducted at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College hospital and then the body would be handed over," said Kollam Sub Collector K.Chithra.

Mathew was part of a video on the "Sahayak System", which went viral in the social media.

Hailing from Karuvelil in Kollam, Kerala, he was posted as an orderly attached with a Colonel at the Deolali School of Artillery.

In the video, Mathew had reportedly said that higher officials allegedly mistreated their "Sahayaks" and forced them to do petty jobs like polishing shoes, washing clothes and taking their pet dogs for walks.

The alleged sting video, captured through hidden cameras with faces masked, had gone viral on social media networks, as he raised questions on the "Sahayak System".