Graves dug up over rumours of buried jewels
PURNIA: Rumours that valuable items are buried along with former British officials and their family members in cemeteries in Bihar’s Purnia have resulted in the desecration of many such graves, with police promising an investigation into the reports.
There has been no report so far of valuable items being found in the graves, but locals say many graves located across four cemeteries have been destroyed.
Out of more than 250 such graves, about 200 have been vandalised, according to locals and experts.
“More than 200 British people, including many eminent persons, were buried in four cemeteries two each for Catholic and Protestant…,” researcher and professor at Purnia University Naresh Kumar Srivastava said. “Dr David Picachy, the first civil of Purnia, was among them,” Srivasatava said.
Father Jacob of Anglican Church expressed concern over the desecration of the graves. “We have lodged complaints several times to police and administration but to no avail,” he said.
Station house officer (SHO) of Khazanchi Hat police station Anil Kumar Singh, however, denied getting any complaint regarding the vandalism. “No one has ever lodged any complaint,” he said. “The police will look into the matter on priority.” He said the police had previously arrested some drug addicts from the area.
A person responsible for looking after one of the cemesurgeon teries said the reason behind the digging of the graves was the general belief that they contained jewellery made of gold, diamonds and other precious stones. Though occasional incidents of vandalism at the cemetery were reported, there has been a sudden spurt in these incidents in the last few months, the person said, asking not to be named.
More than 200 British people who were posted in the city in different capacities died there between 1770 and 1947.
Purnia became a full- fledged district on February 14, 1770, soon after Gerrad Gustavus Ducarel became its first collector. Since 1770, the British people began settling there in houses called “kothis”.
Zamindar Alexander Forbes, after whose name Forbesganj town (now in Araria) was established in old Purnia district, is one of those buried there.
Forbes and his wife Diana died of malaria in 1890.