'Dead Bodies Dragged': West Bengal Governor J Dhankhar Calls For Probe Into Video, Says Home Secretary Admitted to Violation of Protocol
"I am anguished by the callous manner in which 14 bodies were dragged on road. I took to writing to the Chief Secretary and Home Secretary. Home Secretary has responded. His response is virtually an admission that the protocol was not in place," the Governor said.
Kolkata, June 12: West Bengal Jagdeep Dhankhar, who raised outrage on Twitter after a viral video purportedly shot in Kolkata showed 14 unclaimed decomposed bodies being dragged, demanded a probe into the matter. In a statement issued on Friday, Dhankar claimed that the State Home Secretary has virtually admitted to the violation of protocol in handling the deceased. Video Shows Unclaimed Bodies Being Disposed off in West Bengal; Kolkata Civic Body Says No Link with COVID-19.
"I am anguished by the callous manner in which 14 bodies were dragged on road. I took to writing to the Chief Secretary and Home Secretary. Home Secretary has responded. His response is virtually an admission that the protocol was not in place," the Governor said.
"These 14 bodies had come from a hospital morgue and were patients at one point of time. Each patient will have a history when he breathed last, none of that is being revealed. It's my obligation to thoroughly probe the matter and make it transparently apparent to the people," Dhankhar added.
The video began circulating on Thursday and social media users said the deceased were COVID-19 victims. Reports claimed that the bodies were being moved into a van from a morgue room in southern Kolkata.
The Kolkata Police issued a statement to warn the netizens against fake news, stating that the bodies were not related to coronavirus. The claim was validated and reiterated by the city's municipal corporation.
"West Bengal Health Department has informed that dead bodies were not of COVID patients, but were unclaimed/ unidentified bodies from Hospital Morgue. Legal action is being taken against persons spreading," the Kolkata Police said.
See Tweet by Kolkata Police
Earlier, BJP state unit chief Dilip Ghosh stoked a row by claiming that the bodies were likely of COVID-19 victims and were deliberately hidden by the state government to suppress coronavirus fatality toll. State Urban Affairs Minister Firhad Hakim categorically rejected his charge, reiterating that the unclaimed bodies were not linked to coronavirus.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 12, 2020 07:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).