ARIYALUR: An elderly man working in a crematorium died on Thursday night allegedly after he accidentally fell into a burning pyre in Kumiliyam village in Ariyalur district.
His son, who also works there, set the half-burnt body on fire thinking it was the corpse they had cremated earlier. The deceased was identified as K Thangarasu (75) from Kumiliyam.
According to police, Thangarasu allegedly was under the influence of alcohol when he joined two other workers, including his son Sakthivel, in cremating the body of Ramadoss, after his relatives performed the rituals before leaving the crematorium after lighting the pyre.
Sakthivel and the other worker left the crematorium halfway asking Thangarasu to complete the work. On Friday morning, when Sakthivel and Ramadoss’s relatives came to the crematorium for the second day rituals, Sakthivel found a half burnt body on the pyre. He mistook the body to be that of Ramadoss and burnt it again without realising it was that of his father Thangarasu, police said.
Later, he went looking for Thangarasu who was missing from the spot. After searching for him in vain, Sakthivel spotted the slippers of his father close to the pyre and sensed something was wrong. So, he checked the pyre closely and found two skeletons, and came to a conclusion that one of them was his his father.
Apparently, Thangarasyu had fallen into the pyre and died.
Acting on information, Irumbilikurichi police visited the spot and conducted enquiries. The police found the skeletal remains only in the pyre. A case has been registered.