The family of Moinuddin were in for a shock when they reached Lok Nayak Hospital on Sunday to collect the body of the 50-year-old man. They realised the family of another man bearing the same name had been handed over the body erroneously.
This was a second blow to the family as Moinuddin’s wife had passed away shortly after receiving the news of his death, leaving behind three children. The family couldn’t even get a last glimpse of Moinuddin because when Aijazuddin, his brother, contacted the other family, they told him that the body had already been buried.
Aijazuddin said, “The hospital called us on June 5 to take the body. While I was checking the documents, I realised that the father’s name mentioned was Amruddin and the address was of Madhu Vihar. We reside near Jama Masjid. I asked the hospital authorities to show me the face for identification and realised it was someone else. My brother didn’t have a beard and used to stay clean shaven. The hospital told us they would get back my brother’s body, but when I reached there on Sunday I was told that the other family had already buried it.”
The other Moinuddin was 65 years old. His son, Kalamuddin, told TOI that they admitted him to the hospital in the evening on June 4 and he died at night. “My father had kidney problems and diabetes. He was admitted as a Covid-19 suspect. His body was given to us on June 5. My father’s last wish was that he should be buried immediately if he died,” he added.
Kalamuddin claimed the body shown to them had a bandage wrapped from the cheeks to the head and the face was covered in blood. “The hospital said they had removed the dialysis pipe from the neck, which is why the face had blood. We then took the body and buried it,” he added.
“On Sunday, I got a call from Dr Jitendra to confirm if the body we had buried was indeed of my father. We then went to the hospital where we were asked to amicably resolve the issue with the other family. We told Aijazuddin’s family that we had buried him following proper rituals. The family then accompanied us to the graveyard,” said Kalamuddin.
A senior official from LNJP forensics department said, “When the bodies are received at the mortuary, we only get the death certificate and a numbering slip. The body is given to a person after he identifies it. This is what happened in this case. Bodies change colour and appearance, so family members must check properly before taking them. We are planning to record on video or CCTV the handing over of bodies.”
The ordeal of the family began on June 2 when Moinuddin’s blood pressure started dropping. His family rushed him to a nearby hospital from where he was referred to GB Pant since he was being treated for his heart ailment there.
“The doctors at GB Pant asked us to get his sample tested at Lok Nayak. He passed away while they were doing his ECG. His youngest son has a hole in his heart and Moinuddin was collecting money for his operation. When we told the news of his death to his wife, she fell unconscious and died the same day. On June 5, the Covid-19 test report came positive after which the children were asked to stay in home quarantine,” said Aijazuddin.
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