New Delhi/Deoria: The death of Rakesh Chauhan, a 33-year-old Indian sailor who lost his life in Venezuela in May 2026, has now taken a scary and mysterious turn that has created an international stir. When the body of this young sailor of the Merchant Navy reached his ancestral home in Deoria, Uttar Pradesh, across the seven seas from the South American country, the family had no idea that there was a truth hidden inside the coffin which would blow their senses.
Rakesh Chauhan, a resident of Langra Bazaar Tola in Deoria district of Uttar Pradesh, had gone to Venezuela as a crew member on a Merchant Navy ship through 'Xfinity' company in November 2025. In May 2026, the family suddenly received the news of his death. Initially, company officials told on phone that Rakesh had fallen overboard and had suffered serious injuries. The very next morning it was said that his chances of survival were only 5 percent, and by the evening death was confirmed. The company claimed that the death was due to a fall. But the suspense started when the company promised to hand over the body within a week, but the body reached Deoria after about a month i.e. on June 4, 2026.
FSUI alleges that while sending the body to India, neither any post-mortem report was provided by Venezuela nor any official document was shared on the circumstances of death. The organization says that the lack of transparency makes this entire matter more suspicious. The union has demanded the Venezuelan authorities, the company concerned and the Indian Embassy to make public detailed information about the entire incident.
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When the body reached Deoria, when the team of doctors examined it in the presence of the police, they were stunned. There was already a 60 cm long incision and 22 stitches on the body from the neck to the pubic symphysis. At the same time, there was a 20 cm incision and 21 stitches in the back of the head from one ear to the other. Initially the doctors refused to conduct the postmortem without official orders because the first autopsy had been conducted abroad. Later, when the postmortem was conducted again on the special orders of the District Magistrate (DM), the truth that came before the doctors stunned the medical world and the administration.
According to the postmortem report shared by the 'Federation of Seafarers Unions of India' (FSUI), not a single major organ was present within Rakesh Chauhan's body.
The doctors of Deoria clearly wrote that it is completely impossible to find out the real cause of death as all the vital organs are missing.
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According to forensic experts, in some cases internal organs may be removed for examination during a detailed post-mortem. However, controversy arose in this case because allegedly the family was neither given prior information, nor was the post-mortem report submitted, nor was any clear explanation received from the concerned authorities.
Usually, parts of some organs or viscera are preserved for the first autopsy or forensic investigation, but missing entire organs and not giving any report raises very serious questions. Venezuelan authorities neither sent any postmortem report nor documented the circumstances of the death. Rakesh's elderly father Ram Dev Chauhan has tearfully demanded from the government that this international conspiracy should be exposed and strict action should be taken against the guilty company. At the same time, FSUI on its social media account has strongly demanded immediate intervention of the Indian Embassy in Venezuela, a high-level investigation into the matter and justice and compensation to the victim's family. This behavior of an Indian sailor on foreign soil is now becoming a big diplomatic issue.
FSUI has demanded a thorough investigation from the Venezuelan authorities, active intervention of the Indian Embassy, publicizing the official post-mortem report and providing justice and appropriate compensation to Rakesh Chauhan's family. At present this case is leaving many unanswered questions - how did Rakesh Chauhan die? Why were so many organs missing from his body after post-mortem? And why was the family not given complete information? The answers to these questions will now depend on the possible investigation and official report.
