The family of a 69-year-old man, who died after collapsing at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, has alleged that a five-carat diamond ring went missing from his person during the medical emergency.
The incident occurred in the early hours of January 4. The Delhi Police has registered a case following the family's claims that the valuable jewellery, worn by the man when he collapsed at Terminal 3, went missing during the chaos of the resuscitation efforts.
According to the FIR, the victim, a resident of Rajasthan, was in the process of boarding flight to Baku, Azerbaijan, as part of a group tour when he suddenly lost consciousness at around 4 am in the departure area.
Airport staff alerted the medical team, which reached the spot and started resuscitation efforts, including CPR. The man was shifted to the medical emergency area where doctors later declared him dead.
The victim's son told the police that his father had been wearing the ring for nearly 30 years. "The ring is of immense value to my mother and the family as it is the last memory of my father," he said.
Recalling the sequence of the events, the son said he had dropped his parents at Terminal 3 and received a call from his mother at 4 am regarding his father's condition. He rushed back but was denied entry.
"I requested the staff to let me in, but due to protocols, I was asked to wait outside. I stood there helplessly and could not do anything for him," he said, adding that his mother was eventually brought out in a wheelchair and his father's body was handed over to them at around 8.30 am.
The family alleged that the diamond ring went missing while medical assistance was being provided. They maintained that the ring was present when the victim was taken for treatment.
"The ring was present when my father was taken for medical assistance, but it was missing when his belongings were handed over to us," the son said in the FIR. He added that the jewellery held significant emotional value for the family.
The airport police registered a case on January 24. A detailed investigation is underway and teams are scanning CCTV footage of the departure and medical emergency areas to trace the missing item, the police said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
