Parents bring cancer-ailing child to Haridwar for Gangasnan; suffocated to death

The aunt of the boy dipped him in front of his parents. The child was screaming at first, but later the loud cries stopped.

Haridwar: A seven-year-old boy, suffering from blood cancer, was allegedly dipped in the Ganga river in Haridwar until he suffocated to death, police said on Wednesday.

Police said that the boy’s parents, who had brought him to the banks of Har-Ki-Pauri, were hoping for a “miracle cure” after the doctors said that the child would never win the battle against cancer.

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“The superstitious parents thought that if their son, ailing from blood cancer, would take a Gangasnan (dip in holy Ganga), he would be cured of the disease,” City Superintendent of Police Swatantra Kumar said.

“The aunt of the boy dipped him in front of his parents. The child was screaming at first, but later the loud cries stopped. Bystanders rushed the child to the hospital, where he was declared dead,” he said.

The police officer said that further actions would be initiated once the postmortem report of the deceased is out.

An investigation into this matter is underway. Further details are awaited.