Family mistakenly takes wrong body from SCB Cuttack mortuary; alleges bribe, theft during exchange

A distressing mix-up at the SCB Medical College and Hospital in Odisha's Cuttack has left the family of an elderly woman in Lunahar village, Salepur block, shocked after they mistakenly took the body of another person instead of their deceased relative.

Swarnalata Sahoo, a resident of Lunahar village, suffered a heart attack on Thursday and was first admitted to Salepur before being transferred to SCB Medical College for further treatment. Following her death, her body was kept in the hospital mortuary.

SCB authorities asked Swarnalata’s son to identify the body. However, due to mental distress caused by the sudden loss, he failed to recognise his mother and inadvertently brought home the body of another individual. 

Villagers, reportedly, realised the mistake when they attempted to conduct the final rites and removed the plastic covering from the body. With the help of locals, the family returned the incorrect body to SCB and retrieved Swarnalata’s actual body, completing the last rites properly.

Allegations of Money Demand and Theft of Personal Belongings

The family has also alleged that hospital staff demanded money in exchange for returning the correct body, and that some of Swarnalata’s personal belongings, including her ear studs, were taken from the mortuary. 

Bharati Sahoo, Swarnalata’s daughter-in-law, said, “After my mother-in-law's death, my husband was not in his right mind. The hospital personnel asked us to collect her body. My husband collected it without properly checking, and we later had to return the wrong body to the hospital. Her gold earrings were taken.”

A local villager added, “When we went to exchange the bodies, the sweepers at SCB initially did not allow us. They demanded Rs 2 lakh, and we eventually secured the body after giving a bribe of Rs 1,000.”

The incident has raised concerns about identification protocols and security of personal belongings in the hospital’s mortuary.

No official statement has yet been issued by hospital authorities regarding these claims.