Howrah (West Bengal): An undertrial prisoner, who was undergoing treatment at a Kolkata hospital, died last Friday. His body allegedly went missing from the state-owned SSKM Hospital morgue in the city. The incident was reported last Friday when the Hastings police station in Kolkata informed the Chandrapur police station in Howrah that the undertrial prisoner Bablu Pollol had died while undergoing treatment at the hospital.
After that, the Chandrapur police station contacted the family of the deceased Bablu, a resident of the Chandrapur area in Howrah. The family alleged that they were turned away by the police on one pretext or the other. The family of the deceased further alleged that when they visited the hospital on Sunday to take the body, they were asked to come on Monday.
When we went to the hospital, Bablu's body was not handed over to us, said the kin of the deceased. The family complained that the police were not cooperating with them. "We came to know that someone else had mistakenly taken Bablu Pollal's body and cremated it. We are planning to take legal recourse in the incident," the kin alleged.
Mitali Hazra, niece of the deceased, alleged that her uncle was in jail for the past 11 years. On October 20, they received the news of their uncle's death. Initially, they were asked to take the body on Sunday. Later, they were called the next day. Finally, we were asked to bring all the documents with them, said Mitali.
After completing all the paperwork, they were asked to go to the morgue to identify the body. Mitali claimed that the body was not handed over though she waited till 9 pm at the hospital morgue. The police were not able to identify the body, she alleged.
