RANCHI: More than a month after 27-year-old Vijay Kumar Mahto was fatally caught in an alleged crossfire between police and criminals in Saudi Arabia on 15 October, his family is still waiting for his body to be brought home.
According to Mahto’s sister-in-law, the family has been living in constant distress; they have waited every day for news, and food has not been cooked in their house for the last month due to the death in the family.
As per local tradition, food is not cooked in the house after a death in the family until the cremation of the body is completed.
Notably, after being hit by the bullet, Vijay Kumar Mahto allegedly sent a voice note to his wife in his village, Dudhapania, under Dumri block of Giridih, informing her that he had mistakenly been hit by a bullet and that there was no chance of his survival. Vijay also sent his photograph and said in the voice message that the bullet was meant for others but had accidentally hit him.
Vijay, in his voice message, could be heard crying in pain and pleading with his wife that only God could save his life as he was vomiting blood. He added that other workers who were with him had fled the spot and that he had been crying in pain for the last hour, but no one had come to his rescue.
For the last month, the family members have been waiting every day for the body. Vijay Mahto’s wife, Basanti Devi, has been making repeated requests to the government for the return of the body along with compensation.
“Even after a month of the incident, we have not received the dead body so that we can cremate it and perform the last rites. Government should take pro-active steps to ensure that the dead body reaches us as soon as possible,” said Mahto’s sister-in-law Malti Devi.
When contacted, officials in the Migrant Control Cell said that although the process has already begun, it will take time for the body to reach India.
“The matter is with the Public Prosecution Office and the investigation is still on, therefore it will take some more time for the dead body to reach India. Meanwhile, a no objection certificate has been sought from the family members for the same,” said Team Leader of the State Migrant Control Cell, Shikha Lakra. The body will be released only after clearance from the Saudi Arabian police, she added.
As per information provided by the Indian Embassy in Riyadh to the Jharkhand government, the incident took place in the Jeddah region, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Consulate General of India (CGI), Jeddah.
The CGI informed that the death is being treated as suspicious, and Mahato’s body remains in the custody of the Public Prosecution Office in Jumum, Makkah.
