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A former Chief Financial Officer of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) from Bengaluru has alleged that he was forced to pay multiple bribes for official processes following the death of his daughter. In a now deleted LinkedIn post, Sivakumar K detailed his experience after the death of his 34-year-old daughter, Akshaya. “Recently my only child passed away at age 34. The amount of open bribes being asked by ambulance, police for FIR and post-mortem report, crematorium for giving receipts, BBMP office for death certificate,” he wrote.
Akshaya had suffered a brain haemorrhage at their home on September 18.
Sivakumar said in his post that an ambulance driver had demanded Rs 3,000 to transport his daughter’s body from a hospital in Kasavanahalli to St John’s Hospital in Koramangala. He alleged that at the Bellandur police station, where he went to complete formalities for the post-mortem, an inspector was “rude” and “showed no empathy”.
He further alleged, “Since police have to give FIR copy and post mortem report, we met after 4 days. They openly demanded cash which I paid in the police station. I later found there were no CCTV cameras in the area where they take money (sic),”
“Very sad state. I had money, I paid. What will the poor do?” Sivakumar added.
According to his post, the ordeal continued at the crematorium, where he was asked to pay money for the receipt, and later at the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) office, where he struggled for five days to obtain the death certificate. He said officials told him that no one was available because of an ongoing “caste survey,” and that the certificate was eventually issued only after he paid more than the official fee to a senior officer.
Sivakumar questioned the lack of compassion among public officials and recounted how his family donated his daughter’s eyes after the post-mortem.
“Do police officials have a family or feeling when they demand money or speak rudely to a person who is already in trauma and in emotional turmoil?” he wrote, adding that he was able to navigate the process only because of his financial means and professional connections.
Screenshots of his post went viral, triggering widespread public outrage. Bengaluru police have now taken cognizance of the allegations. Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh ordered immediate action, and Deputy Commissioner of Police (Whitefield) K Parashurama confirmed that Police Sub-Inspector Santosh and Constable Gorakhnath from Bellandur police station had been suspended. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated against them.