KUALA LUMPUR: The death of tahfiz student Mohamad Thaqif Amin Mohd Gaddafi is still under investigation, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam today.
He said the forensic team is still conducting checks to ascertain the 11-year-old boy's cause of death and hoped to receive the full report in two weeks.
Thaqif, who had both his legs amputated, died at the Sultan Ismail Hospital in Johor Baru on April 26, following an alleged abuse at a religious school in Kota Tinggi.
"The pathologists were not satisfied with the findings of their post-mortem and decided to exhume the boy's legs for further check," he said on the sideline of the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of the Malaysia Orthopedic Association here.
Subramaniam said the pathologists have so far determined the boy's "tentative" cause of death but needed more information before making any announcement on the matter.
"The team requires more evidence before any announcement can be made and that was why the boy's legs had to be exhumed," he said, declining to reveal details on the "tentative" cause of death.
It was reported that authorities had dug up Thaqif's grave on Thursday afternoon for further investigations.
His family confirmed that the exhuming process started around 3pm at Felda Bukit Aping Muslim Cemetery in Kota Tinggi, where the boy was buried.
Police reportedly said the process was allowed by the court under Section 335 of the Criminal Procedure Code for the purpose of further investigations in the case.
Thaqif was hospitalised after severe bouts of pain which occurred days after was allegedly beaten by the assistant warden at his religious school hostel in Kota Tinggi.
Police said Thaqif and 14 other schoolmates were allegedly beaten with a water hose on March 24 for making noise at the school's surau.
On April 22, doctors had to amputated both his legs to prevent the spread of an infection. He had undergone surgery the next day to treat congealed blood in one of his hands.
His right arm was also in danger of being amputated. Doctors had planned to amputate the arm on April 26 but had to suspend the operation as his condition became worse.