BALASORE: In a shocking incident, a cancer patient on Thursday was barred from entering his rented accommodation after the landlord allegedly locked the family out over coronaviurs fear since they had visited Bhubaneswar. The family spent an agonising eight hours under the scorching sun after they faced the stigma. The incident occurred in Sahadevkhunta police limits area.
Suresh Kumar Sharma, the cancer patient, had come to Bhubaneswar for a regular medical consultation along with his wife and granddaughter two days ago. On Thursday, when they returned, house owner Laxmidhar Bhuyan did not allow them to enter the premises. Even the district administration’s initial attempts to convince him yielded no result.
The Sharmas live near Lokanath Temple in the house rented out by Bhuyan. Sources said Sharma, his wife and grand-daughter returned home at around 11.30 am but Bhuyan allegedly locked the main entrance from inside and asked them to return to Bhubaneswar which is a hotspot for coronavirus or find some other place to go.
Since the Sharma family had no alternative for shelter, they were forced to take rest outside the main entrance of the house for several hours in the intolerable heat of the day. Sharma’s granddaughter had to fetch water from a neighbour as the landlord remained unmoved by their plight.
When neighbours drew attention of the administration, a team of police and health officials along with Additional District Magistrate Sambit Nayak rushed to the spot. The health officials used thermal screening to check the family members and tried to convince the owner. By the time Bhuyan relented, the family had already spent over eight hours outside.
ADM Nayak said, the house owner did not want to allow the family inside since Bhubaneswar is a hotspot for coronavirus. Necessary action will be initiated against Bhuyan for violation of lockdown order. No complaint was filed by any of family members of the cancer patient till reports last came in.