Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology

Jamnagar region, Gujarat state, enjoys a relatively low incidence of homicide in India. The following study examined 37 cases of violent mechanical homicidal asphyxial deaths reported during the years 2000 to 2004 in the Jamnagar region. It constituted about 20.67% of the total 179 homicidal deaths brought during the period with an approximate ratio of 1:5. There were 19 male and 18 female victims with an average incidence of 7.4 cases per year. Most of the victims were from the age group of 21 to 40 years. Mostly they were married, illiterate farmers or house dwellers from rural areas. Ligature strangulation and throttling were the common methods of killing amongst adults and drowning amongst the small children. Most of the cases took place during the day time. In majority of the cases the victim was killed by an acquaintance. Important signs of asphyxia were prominently seen in most of the cases. In 11 cases, (29.73%) we observed other bodily injuries too. Amongst them, blunt head injuries were common. There was not a single case showing sharp bodily injury. Incidence of sexual offences and consumption of alcohol was negligible. Family related matters were the main motives behind the killing.