Relatives of Sahir Ahmed mourn after his body was recovered from the Brahmaputra on Saturday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Guwahati, Feb. 13: River police today fished out the body of the other Class IX student of Gurukul Grammar Senior Secondary School from the Brahmaputra, fuelling suspicion of foul play.

Sahir Ahmed’s bloated body with alleged wound marks was found floating at the river’s Uzan Bazar Jahaj Ghat by his family this morning. Yesterday, Shimanta Saurav Gayan’s partially decomposed body bearing apparent injury marks was recovered from the river’s Kharghuli bank. The river police registered a murder case.

Last Sunday, the two were feared drowned in the Brahmaputra at Noonmati where they had gone for a picnic with five classmates. The families of the two students suspect murder.

The members of Sahir’s family were engaged in a search operation by hiring a private boat when they spotted the body floating around 8 this morning. Immediately on identifying it, they informed the river police. The body was later pulled ashore in the presence of a magistrate.

Sahir’s family alleged that it was a clear case of murder and the police were trying to hush up the case. “After seeing Sahir’s body, I am confirmed that he was murdered and it was pre-planned. There were injury marks on several parts of Sahir’s body, including the head, chest and the face. There was sign of profuse bleeding from his nose and teeth from which our suspicion gained ground,” Raju Ali, a close relative of Sahir, said.

Naba Kumar Deka Baruah, an executive magistrate of Kamrup metropolitan administration who was present on the spot, said he had also noticed some injury marks and blood stains on Sahir’s body.

He, however, said the body being six days old, only an autopsy report would confirm whether the injuries were sustained before or after death.

Sahir’s grandfather, Nawbab Rahman Bora, said: “We had earlier lodged an FIR suspecting foul play. The family was waiting for the recovery of the body. All of us today saw the body and are confirmed that Sahir must have been murdered by the five other companions who also went to the riverside for picnic. The family is not happy with the police investigation as we have doubts that they are trying to protect the culprits.”

A post-mortem was conducted at Gauhati Medical College and Hospital this afternoon. The last rites (janaza) of Sahir was performed at the Satgaon-Naopara Kabarasthan at Satgaon this evening.