JHARSUGUDA: Days after the tragedy of Chaturbhuja Banka of Boudh district, who had to tie the body of his dead sister-in-law to take it to the graveyard stirred the State, an MLA turned pallbearer for a destitute woman in Sambalpur district demonstrating that humanity has not lost hope.
Ramesh Patua, the BJD legislator from Rengali, on Friday set an example by carrying the dead body of a beggar woman at Amnapali under Kolabira block to the cremation ground and conducted the funeral with dignity. He was accompanied by his son, nephew and friend, all of whom lent their shoulders to carry the deceased.
The 80-year-old woman, called Ghudken by locals, was staying in a thatched house in the village under Sodamal gram panchayat with his 50-year-old brother-in-law who is known as Ghudka. The duo eked their living by begging. Even though their actual names were not known, they got the names as they were begging by using a Ghudka, a popular musical instrument of western Odisha.
When Ghudken died on Thursday owing to old-age related problems, Ghudka was at a loss to conduct her last rites as no villager came forward to carry the body. The legislator, who was in the area at the time, came to know about the incident.
He immediately called his son Ankit and nephew Badal and asked them to go to the village and make arrangements for the last rites.
He and his friend Bharat Karali also rushed to the village and together, they carried the body to the cremation ground and conducted the last rites as per Vedic rituals.
Patua said, he had known Ghudken since long as she was begging in Laida area in Sambalpur district which is his native village. He learnt about her death from personnel of Laida police outpost under Katarbaga police station in Sambalpur.
He was also informed that no villager was coming forward to lift the body for her last rites.
“I requested the villagers to carry the body to the graveyard but nobody came forward fearing they would be ostracised by their respective Jaati Samaj (body of a caste) if they touched the beggar’s body. I then decided to conduct the funeral myself. I feel this is an act of humanity and serving people is above all for me,” he said.