India News: Gay murders: sketches of alleged killers made (LEAD) 16-August-2004
New Delhi, India : Delhi Police Monday prepared sketches of two men suspected to be involved in the grisly murder of a USAID official and his male partner. The naked bodies of Pushkin Chandra, the son of a retired bureaucrat, and a man identified only as Vishal were Saturday found in the first floor annexe of the Chandras' sprawling mansion at the upmarket Anand Lok neighbourhood in south Delhi. "The rough sketches of the two men were prepared on the basis of details provided by Pushkin Chandra's friends, who had had seen them with the other victim at a party Friday night," said Deputy Commissioner of Police Praveer Ranjan. "The men were last seen with Pushkin and Vishal, which points towards their involvement," he said. He said one of the men had Mongoloid features, while the other was dark skinned. The man with Mongoloid features had been seen with Pushkin in Connaught Place a month ago. Pushkin, an MBA from the US, joined USAID after he returned to India in 2001. "Pushkin led two lives. Some of his friends were straight and from similar affluent backgrounds, while he had another set of friends who were gay," Ranjan said. His family was aware of his homosexuality and the household witnessed frequent fights over the issue. Investigations have revealed Vishal had earlier been seen with Pushkin, who had taken him to a friend's house to watch an India- Pakistan cricket match sometime back. "This shows the two were very close. But unfortunately, nothing has come to our knowledge about Vishal and his family," Ranjan said. Police have still not been able to trace Pushkin's Opel Astra car. "Investigations have revealed that Pushkin used to bring male prostitutes to his house parties, which was disliked by his straight friends," said another senior police officialPuskin's friends have told police that he had companions who were from low-income families. Police have not ruled out blackmail being involved in the case. "There were several photographs of nude young men in objectionable poses. There is a possibility that the killers might have objected to such acts, resulting in the murders," the official said. Investigations have confirmed that a Danish national identified as Uffe Gartner was a close friend of Pushkin. "Interrogations have revealed that Gartner used to throw several parties for homosexuals like Pushkin," the official added. Police have swooped down on dozens of male prostitutes and transsexuals catering to affluent gays as part of their investigation. "The brutal manner in which the murder took place suggests that the killers might be transsexuals because they are known for their brutality," said another police official. ============================================= India News: Gays, male prostitutes under police scanner 16-August-2004 New Delhi, India : Police have swooped down on dozens of male prostitutes and transsexuals catering to affluent gays in Delhi while probing the grisly murder of two young men that shocked the capital. The bodies of Pushkin Chandra, the son of a retired bureaucrat, and a man identified only as Vishal were found Saturday in the first floor annexe of a sprawling mansion at Anand Lok in south Delhi owned by Chandra's parents. Police suspect the involvement of more than two people in the murders and there are strong suspicions that the killers were transsexuals. The naked bodies of the victims were found in a room where Pushkin usually stayed and met guests. Senior police officers said the victims were gays who had close links with male prostitutes and transsexuals. Police suspect the two dead men might have been involved in making gay porn movies and selling them abroad. Pushkin was an employee of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and had returned to India in 2001 after obtaining an MBA from the US. Police have failed to trace a Danish national identified as Uffe Gartner, who knew Pushkin and reportedly flew to France on the day the bodies were discovered. Pushkin and Vishal had reportedly attended a farewell party for Gartner along with two other men Friday night. Police have also picked up Pushkin's friend Christopher in connection with the case. "We are questioning several people who knew Pushkin as well as friends who had got him in touch with gays and transsexuals in the capital," said a senior police official. Investigations have revealed that Pushkin used to hire male prostitutes and then take them to gay parties. "On Friday night, he had gone to a party organised at Sanwal Nagar near Defence Colony. The victims and Gartner were at the party and there were others who are being questioned," the official said. The police recovered two knives, 60 photographs and pornographic material and over 80 CDs from Pushkin's room. Police are thoroughly examining each CD and photograph, another official said. "The photographs are in colour and most of them were taken with a Polaroid camera. Most photos feature nude Indian males. The men who were photographed apparently were from the middle and lower classes. It seems that all of them were male prostitutes or gigolos active in the city," he said. Investigations have also revealed that the victims were watching gay movies before they were murdered. "We found a gay porn CD in the DVD player which points to the fact that both men were watching a gay movie before being murdered. A video camera was also recovered from the room," the official said. ======================================================= IANS NEW DELHI: A double murder here has put the spotlight on the country's gay community, which has for long complained of ostracism and demanded repeal of an archaic law that makes same gender sexual activity illegal. With the discovery of the bodies of a USAID official and his friend on Aug 14, both allegedly homosexuals, there has been a slew of reporting on the community. "There is a distinct lack of respect for the dead," said sociologist Peter D'Souza. "There is voyeurism even in death which is shameful. "Look at what they are covering about the murder - the gay angle, police saying they found pornographic material involving pictures of naked men. The private lives of people are being put to ugly scrutiny in a time of great grief for a family." Members of the community also strongly objected to reportage on the murder. "Look at what the newspaper headlines are saying 'Double murder outs Delhi's gay culture'," said a prominent designer. "What's 'gay culture'? Does anyone ever say a murder 'outs heterosexual culture'? The entire mindset is warped." Pushkin Chandra, 38, a project development officer with USAID, and his friend Vishal were found stabbed to death on the morning of Aug 14 in Chandra's posh south Delhi residence. Police say pornographic CDs and magazines were found from the residence and Chandra was an out of the closet homosexual. They also suspect the murder could have been committed by some people he may have invited home. The motive could be theft because Chandra's luxury Opel Corsa car was missing. Chandra's parents have refused to speak to the media, saying their son was painted very negatively. "We have been made to sound like freaks," said a gay restaurateur. "It is so ugly. If you read the papers, it's like all homosexuals are forever searching the streets for same sex prostitutes." According to the Delhi State AIDS Control Society, there are about 7,000 gays in the Indian capital. About 10 percent of the Indian population is estimated to have a same gender leaning in sexuality. The homosexuality debate in India is entrenched in a colonial era law enacted in 1860 that criminalizes "sexual offences against the order of nature". Though "against the order of nature" is not explained, it has been largely interpreted to mean homosexuality. Activists and critics have long argued that societal isolation of the community stems from this law. "The vilification and voyeurism continues. We have to strive for the next step, acceptance as a part and parcel of the community at large," said Ponni, who works for the Nigah Media Collective, a sexual rights and freedom movement. Added puppeteer and rights activist Varun Narain: "We have homosexual depiction in the famous Khajuraho temples thousands of years ago. But a lot of people live in a vacuum." There is at present a petition in the Delhi High Court, seeking the removal of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that makes homosexual activity illegal. In the last few months, there have been two big gay and lesbian marches against the law and discrimination in New Delhi and Kolkata. A human rights network called Voices Against 377 has written a letter to Law Minister Hans Raj Bhardwaj asking for the abolition of the law. "Isn't it high time the government looked around and realized that gays and lesbians exist? You cannot wish us away," said Akshay, who works for Delhi-based advocacy group Prism, which is a part of Voices Against 377. =============================================== Gay Double Murder Shocks India by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff Posted: August 16, 2004 11:01 am ET (New Delhi) The slayings of two young men whose bodies were found in a home in an affluent New Delhi neighborhood has both shocked and titillated India where most gays are underground and where crimes against gays often go unreported. The bodies of Pushkin Chandra, a USAID worker and the son of a prominent former government employee, and a man identified only as Vishal were found Saturday in the first floor of the sprawling mansion owned by Chandra's parents. Both men had been stabbed to death. Police say that the area where the men were found had been ransacked and Polaroid photos of nude men, many with names on the back of them, were found strewn around the room. Police say it appears that the victims knew their killers knew the victims adding revenge could be the motive. "There is a possibility that the victims were blackmailing someone. But nothing definite can be said at this stage," a police officer said. The room in which the bodies were found was locked from the outside. There were no signs of a forced entry into the room investigators said. Investigations have revealed that both men had returned from a party around midnight Saturday. A security camera showed the two leaving the home for the party, but not returning. Chandra's car is also missing. Monday, police began rounding up male prostitutes in New Delhi for questioning. Police from material found at the scene of the killings Chandra often hired hustlers. Police also want to question a Danish national identified as Uffe Gartner, who knew Chandra and reportedly flew to France on the day the bodies were discovered. The party that the two victims had attended was reportedly a farewell for Gartner. The murders have put a media spotlight on India's gay community. As gays fight to have laws against sodomy, dating back to British colonial rule, repealed, many people in the community say lurid media reports are only harming that effort ============================================================ Gay crime rocks Capital TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ MONDAY, AUGUST 16, 2004 12:25:26 AM ] NEW DELHI: Despite the police questioning more than 30 people in the case, the identity of the accused who killed Pushkin Chandra, a USAID official and his friend remains a mystery. As investigations into the case has so far failed to shed any light on what led to the gory killings, the police are fast coming round to the view that this could well be the first case of hate crime against gays in Delhi. "The ferocity with which they were stabbed suggests that the accused did not approve of Chandra and his ways," said a senior police officer The police have questioned the owner of an export firm based in Paschim Vihar in the case. Another woman, a resident of Green Park, who had recently undergone a sex change has also been questioned. The police have also sent e-mails to a Denmark national, Uffe, whose farewell party the two victims had attended alongwith two other unidentified men on Friday Night. Uffe had left for Denmark next morning. Chandra's Opel car, however, is still missing. Police suspect that the accused used the car to flee. The bodies of Chandra, a product of Doon School, and his friend, were found from his home at Anand Lok in south Delhi on Saturday morning. The police had seized hundreds of nude photographs of men and pornographic VCDs from his room. Chandra was apparently nude when he was stabbed several times in the neck and abdomen. His friend, who was dressed in shorts, was stabbed in the chest. According to sources, the investigations into the case are now centred around Chandra's friend, around 25 years old, whom the police have failed to identify despite questioning most of the USAID official's friends It's almost impossible to suggest that robbery was the motive, as most of Chandra's belongings were left untouched. The accused, we don't know their exact number, clearly knew Chandra and we suspect that it was the other victim who introduced them to him," said the officer. Chandra's digital camera, however, was missing from the spot. Chandra had apparently only recently befriended the other victim as the fifteen people who have been questioned in the case have told the police that they had no clue as to he was. A servant in Chandra's home, however, told the police that he was addressed as Vishal. The brutality with which the two were killed has left the police surprised. "It seems the killer or killers nursed a grudge against the victim. They kept stabbing the victims till they died. It's possible that the victims were forcing the accused to have sex, over which a fight ensued, leading to the stabbings," said the officer. Police are also working on the theory that Chandra was blackmailing the accused. "It's clear that Chandra was in the habit of even picking up young men from roads. In fact, all the people whom we are questioning are part of a 50-member group, comprising gay men, which was headed by Chandra. We have even seized nude photographs of young boys from his pocket," said the officer. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar. Now with Pop-Up Blocker. 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