India seeks urgent Venezuela probe after seafarer's body returned with missing organs

India on Friday said it has formally taken up with Venezuelan authorities the case of an Indian seafarer whose body was returned to India with several internal organs missing, and has requested an urgent investigation into the matter.

Responding to a question during the weekly media briefing, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said New Delhi is in touch with the Venezuelan government regarding the incident.

"We have taken up the matter with the Venezuelan authorities, requesting (them) to urgently investigate the matter. So, we will keep you updated on it," Jaiswal said.

The case concerns Rakesh Chauhan, a 33-year-old merchant navy crew member from Deoria district in Uttar Pradesh, who died while serving aboard a merchant vessel in Venezuela.

More from World

According to his family, Chauhan had travelled to Venezuela in November 2025 through a private shipping company. In May this year, the company informed them that he had suffered serious injuries after a fall and was receiving medical treatment. A day later, the family was informed of his death.

Family members have alleged that the company initially assured them that Chauhan's body would be repatriated within a week. However, the mortal remains reached his hometown nearly a month later.

The matter came under scrutiny after a post-mortem examination conducted in India reportedly revealed that several major internal organs were missing from the body.

Chief Medical Superintendent of Deoria Medical College, H K Mishra, had earlier stated that the post-mortem report found the brain, heart, both lungs, liver, both kidneys, spleen, pancreas, stomach and intestines to be absent.

The report further noted that the thyroid gland, hyoid bone, larynx and trachea were also missing.

Medical authorities said the exact cause of Chauhan's death could not be determined because of the absence of the internal organs required for a comprehensive forensic examination.

The incident has sparked concern among the family and prompted intervention by the Indian government, which is now seeking answers from Venezuelan authorities regarding the circumstances surrounding the death and the condition in which the body was repatriated.

With inputs from agencies