West Bengal Governor Slams State Government Over KMC Handling Of Corpses

The West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar in a series of tweets on Friday, expressed his deep anguish and concern at what he described as "the most unconscionable heart-rending, callous dragging of dead bodies reflected in videos. "The West Bengal Governor in his tweets was referring to videos of dead bodies being dragged along the ground into a waiting van reportedly by Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) workers, tied with a rope.

Governor Dhankar said that he shares public outrage on the matter and added that he had sought an urgent briefing today from KMC Chairperson and Municipal Commissioner. In one of his tweets, the West Bengal Governor added that "given the sensitivities of people and wider ramifications it may have," he urged the Mamata Banerjee government "to be more responsive and humane...a police action to repress would be hurtful," he said. "In our culture, dead bodies have to be accorded highest respect, Governor Dhankar said.

The West Bengal Governor observed that the issue is not whether the dead bodies were those of COVID-19 patients, but the fact that human bodies were dragged "so shamelessly", as he termed it. They were being "treated worse than animals," he remarked.

In a conversation with a reputed television channel, Governor Dhankar said that he had flagged the issue of disposal of dead bodies by the KMC in a letter to chief minister Mamata Banerjee on May 5.

Media reports quoted West Bengal Health Department officials saying that the video was fake and that the bodies were unclaimed ones from a hospital morgue. Kolkata Police are also said to have termed the claims of bodies of COVID-19 patients being dragged and loaded into the van as rumours. Further, police said they would initiate legal action against those spreading fake news.