Man shouldering wife’s body: Cong demands Rs 10L ex-gratia, fair probe

Bhawanipatna: The Kalahandi district Congress on Friday demanded Rs 10 lakh compensation for the kin of Amang Ddei, the deceased woman whose husband Dana Majhi carried her body on his shoulders for 10 kilometres due to non-availability of a hearse van.

Party activists gheraoed the office of the chief district medical officer (CDMO) here and demanded stern action against the culprits. They said that an impartial probe must be ordered by the State government to identify the wrongdoers.

Holding the district administration responsible for the incident, they said chief minister Naveen Patnaik must apologise to the man. They also alleged that social welfare schemes launched by the Odisha government have failed miserably in the state.

The protesters will submit a memorandum addressed to the Governor on the issue.

In his inquiry report submitted to the collector yesterday, Kalahandi CDMO Brajakishore Brahma had reportedly given a clean chit to the hospital authorities saying the man had taken away the body of his wife without informing the hospital staff. He had also said that the man 'presumed' his wife to be dead and took her body from the hospital.