Mild tension prevailed on Wednesday at Begumpet in Telangana, after somebody else’s body was handed over to a family who had lost their relative to COVID-19. The incident took place at Gandhi hospital, which is a nodal centre to treat coronavirus positive cases in Hyderabad.
The deceased was a 48-year old patient from Begumpet, who succumbed to COVID-19 while undergoing treatment at Gandhi hospital.
The body-swap took place after one of the patient’s relatives misidentified the body, as per a report from Deccan Chronicle. Later, when the patient’s wife was called to take a last look at the body at the graveyard, she realised that it was someone else and not her husband.
The family objected and mild tension prevailed for a while between the police officials, health care workers from Gandhi Hospital, and the relatives, as per a report in Telangana Today.
Some of the relatives blamed the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) employees who were responsible for handling the body, and an argument broke out between them.
However, Begumpet Inspector P Srinivas Rao confirmed to Deccan Chronicle that the body swap happened because a relative, 'afraid' to go near the COVID-19 victim’s body fearing infection, wrongly identified the body. Based on the relative’s identification, the formalities and paperwork were conducted and the body was given to them.
Later on, the body was sent back to Gandhi hospital mortuary and the family was promised that the correct body will be handed over to them for conducting the last rites as per COVID-19 protocol, according to a Times of India report.
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