In a major development in the Pydhonie family death case, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has found no adulteration in the food items consumed by the victims, including watermelon.

Four members of a family had died after falling ill hours after consuming food at their residence, initially raising suspicions of food poisoning linked to watermelon or biryani.

However, according to the FDA report, laboratory tests on multiple food samples including watermelon, biryani, water, rice, chicken, spices and dates found no traces of artificial colours, chemicals, or adulterants.

This has ruled out the possibility that the deaths were caused due to contaminated or chemically treated food.

Investigators are now focusing on other possible causes, including bacterial contamination or poisoning. Further clarity is expected from forensic and toxicology reports.