Tehri youth’s body arrives from UAE, cremated

Dehradun

: The

body

of Kamlesh Bhatt, 24, that had been sent back by immigration officials in Delhi last week thereby creating a furore, finally arrived at the cargo terminal of IGI Airport in Delhi on Sunday night.

Bhatt, hailing from Tehri Garhwal, was working at a hotel in Abu Dhabi (UAE) and had passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest on April 17. Amidst the lockdown restrictions, his family struggled to have his body sent back to India and finally, managed to repatriate it on April 24 with the help of an Indian-origin social activist Roshan Raturi who arranged for all the requisite clearances. However, the body was returned by immigration officials in Delhi, citing a ministry of home affairs (MHA) order that prohibited receiving of any such cargo from outside India during the lockdown. Soon after the incident of the body being sent back to

UAE

came to light, the MHA issued an office memorandum clarifying that bringing back mortal remains to the country was permissible as long as all guidelines were being followed. A detailed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for immigration officials was also issued in this regard.

Speaking to TOI, Vimlesh Bhatt, Kamlesh’s cousin, who had gone to Delhi from Dehradun in an ambulance provided by the Uttarakhand government on Sunday to collect the body, said, “We had no problems this time and all the paperwork was completed without any hassles.”

He added that the cremation took place in Rishikesh. “Only six people were present at the time of the cremation in view of the Covid-19 guidelines and after that, all of us returned to our native village,” he said.