They did not let us see dad’s body: Daughter

BENGALURU: Around 10.30am on Monday, KP Agrahara resident Rajeshwari M received a call from Rajajinagar police asking her to visit the station. Worried, Rajeshwari and her husband rushed there only to be told that her father, Muniraju, who died in July 2020 was yet to be cremated and his decomposed body was found in the mortuary of nearby ESIC Hospital.
“It has been over 470 days and they are telling us today that they forgot to cremate my father’s body. How is it even possible,” asked Rajeshwari, failing to hold back her tears.
“My mother hasn’t been able to get over the shock of losing her husband. She, my sisters and I weren’t even allowed to see his body once. I don’t know how to tell her now that her husband’s body wasn’t cremated. I don’t think she will be able to take any more heartbreaks,” Rajeshwari, the youngest of Muniraju’s three daughters, said.
Around 8pm on June 29, Muniraju complained of breathlessness and severe cough. The family immediately took him to ESIC Hospital in Rajajinagar. Three days later, Rajeshwari received a call saying her father had succumbed to Covid-19.
Muniraju’s daughters along with their mother requested the hospital officials if they could see him from a distance at least, but they were denied permission.
“They said the body was handed over to BBMP for cremation and also gave us the death certificate,” said Rajeshwari.
On November 10 last year, Muniraju’s wife M Gajalakshmi wrote to ESIC Hospital seeking Form 4 to apply (to BBMP) for compensation for her husband’s death due to Covid-19. Her application is still under process. This year, the family observed-Muniraju’s first death anniversary.