The 70-year old Prafullya Karmakar of Kushtia’s Mirpur Municipality area infected with Covid-19 died at Kushtia General Hospital on Saturday night.

When Prafullya got died he was accompanied by his wife Kalpana Karmakar.

Kalpana wanted to take the body to her house but it was not done as anyone of her family permitted it. All the family members were affected with Coronavirus.

Moreover, people of the area also may not take it well due to Corona, said Prafullya’s elder son Ananda Kumar Karmakar.

On the night, the body of Prafullya was taken to municipal crematorium of Mirpur upazila with ambulance. It was midnight when the body reached at the crematorium. No one was there even the cremation gate was locked. It was raining then.

After Prafulla’s death, Kalpana informed her family through cell phone from the hospital. But two sons, their wives and a grandson were also affected by Corona. There were no close relatives of the family at their surroundings. Prafullya’s elder son Ananda called some his relatives at night. He also informed the members of the cremation committee. But no one responded.

At one stage, the ambulance was needed to go back as another call of carrying dead body from the hospital came.

The ambulance driver and his two associates unloaded the body on one side of the crematorium and returned.

Late at night everyone went back but only Prafullay’s wife Kalpana Karmakar could not go back. When it started raining heavily, she led the body herself and took shelter in the verandah of Gopalpur Government Primary School next to the crematorium. She spent the whole night there alone. Even after waiting till morning, neither the cremation committee nor any of her relatives came to the funeral.

Zahidul Islam, local councilor of Mirpur municipality, said he went to the spot when he was informed by the upazila executive officer (UNO) of Mirpur.

He said other members of Prafullya Karmakar’s family were infected by the corona. That is why his family members could not come to incinerate the body. However, no one from the Hindu community came forward.

“When I informed the whole to the Upazila Nirbahi Officer he asked me to make arrangements for incineration.

Later, at around 11 am, some members of the local Muslim community cremated the body and buried it next to the crematorium.

Mirpur Upazila Nirbahi Officer Lincoln Biswas said he informed the municipal mayor and local councilor as soon as he came to know about the matter. They have done the work of burying with the local people.

The eldest son Anand Karmakar said that they were all affected by Corona and therefore could not go to crematory. He said his mother was with his father’s body overnight.

When contacted, president of the crematory Ananda Kumar Debnath told that Prafullya’s son came to him on the night and he handed him over key of the crematory and then he does not know anything.

“As the dead was corona affected, so we did not attend there,” he said.