Mumbai: Three weeks back, Maharashtra police constables Dinesh and Tarakeshwari Rathod grabbed headlines after they claimed that they had conquered Mount Everest on May 23, becoming the first Indian couple to scale world's highest summit.
In a strange turn of events, eight fellow mountaineers from Maharashtra have filed a complaint alleging that the couple never scaled the summit, rather they faked their Everest ascent by digitally altering photos.
The complainants, who have pointed out several gaping holes in the story told by the Rathods, allege that the couple never made it past the base camp, according to The Hindu.
“Our suspicions were first aroused owing to the time lag between the day the Rathods claimed to have reached the summit [May 23] and their press conference announcing their achievement [June 5],” Pune-based mountaineer Surendra Shelke told The Hindu.
Shelke, who has more than two decades of mountaineering experience, alleged that no one seemed to have seen the Rathods beyond the base camp
"From the people in the team who accompanied the Rathods, we gathered that the duo had not even reached what is known as the first acclimatisation rotation before the main push to the summit — the Khumbu icefall [at 17,999 ft] — by May 10. So, there is no way they could have completed their climb by May 23 as they claimed" Shelke told the daily.
"After the mountaineers approached the commissioner, she spoke to a few experts and based on their opinion, directed the assistant commissioner to initiate a probe." Mid-Day quoted its sources as saying.
On June 5, addressing a press conference to apprise media of their feat, the two, known as the "adventure couple" in Maharashtra Police, said that they became the first Indian couple and first security personnel couple to reach the top of Mt Everest.
Our dreams have come true, said the couple who tied the knot in 2008 and added that this was the dream they had since then.
"We committed that we will not give birth to a child until we climb Mt Everest, said Rathod, adding that they were immensely pleased to achieve their goal and happy to share the news with the rest of the world.
Tarakeshwari also said that they had even put off their plan to become parents. "With pride now, we want to become parents," she said, and cited their "love and dedication afforded by my husband" for accomplishing their cherished goal.
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