Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) today sought reports from Inspector General of Police (Railways) and collector of Puri district on the incident of a woman tourist transporting her husband's body on a trolley rickshaw for cremation in the holy town.
The commission's acting chairperson B K Mishra took suo motu cognizance of the matter and sought reports from the two authorities within four weeks.
Newspaper reports said a group of 60 tourists, including Durni Bandewada (55) from Sindhuwada district of Madhya Pradesh, were on a tour to Puri where he suddenly developed pain in his stomach and died at the district headquarters hospital at Puri on Monday.
Though his family members inquired from the attending doctor if there was any facility available for carrying the body to Swargadwar cremation ground, they could not get it.
Finally, they hired a trolley rickshaw to take the body for cremation yesterday.
However, the Puri district administration suddenly intervened and arranged an ambulance to transport the body to Swargadwar.
The victim's wife had alleged that the family's request to government railway police for help was also turned down, the reports said.