Cricketer Suresh Raina, who lost two family members after a violent attack in Punjab last month, on Tuesday appealed to the state police and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh to identify the accused and give them strict punishment.
The attack was allegedly a case of robbery and took place in Thariyal village in Punjab’s Pathankot district on the intervening night of August 19 and 20, PTI reported. Raina said his cousin died on Monday night. The police had confirmed on August 29 that Raina’s uncle had died due to head injuries.
“What happened to my family is Punjab was beyond horrible,” Raina tweeted, tagging Singh and the police. “My uncle was slaughtered to death, my bua [aunt] and both my cousins had severe injuries. Unfortunately my cousin also passed away last [Monday] night after battling for life for days. My bua is still very very critical and is on life support.”
Raina said that his family was still in the dark about what happened to his relatives. “Till date we don’t know what exactly had happened that night and who did this,” he added. “I request Punjab Police to look into this matter. We at least deserve to know who did this heinous act to them. Those criminals should not be spared to commit more crimes.”
Superintendents of Police Prabhjot Singh Virk told ANI that a special investigation team has been set up to look into the case. “We are conducting raids at different locations,” he added.
The cricketer’s relatives were attacked by a local gang when they were asleep, the police said, according to PTI. Apart from Raina’s uncle and cousin, the robbers attacked his aunt, another cousin and his uncle’s 80-year-old mother.
On Saturday, the Indian Premier League’s Chennai Super Kings franchise had announced that Raina had pulled out of the tournament in the United Arab Emirates and returned to India due to “personal reasons”. Raina had announced his retirement from international cricket on August 15.
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