NEW DELHI: Noting that it didn’t want to keep the pot boiling over bodies, the Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Manipur Government to ensure dignified burial or cremation of 175 bodies kept in mortuaries by December 11.
A three-judge Bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud said either the next of kin of the could claim the bodies or the state of Manipur should go ahead and perform the last rites at nine sites identified for the purpose as per the municipal laws. “We don’t want to keep pot boiling over bodies,” said the Bench which also included Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra.
Passing the order bearing in mind that violence had taken place in May, the Bench said it would not be proper to further keep the bodies in mortuaries in Imphal and Churachandpur. The Bench ordered the state government to intimate the next of kin about the nine sites on or before next Monday. Regarding identified but unclaimed bodies, it said, “the state shall issue a communication on or before Monday (December 4) intimating that they are permitted to carry out last rites in the next one week.”
In view of the fact that criminal investigations were underway, the Bench said in the event DNA samples had not been drawn from the bodies at the time of autopsy, DNA samples shall be taken before burial/cremation.
It asked the Manipur Government to facilitate the relatives to access the bodies for identification and performance of last rites and posted the matter for further hearing on the committee’s report about acceptance of ex gratia to 38 kin of the victims on December 4.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta cited Justice Gita Mittal Committee report to point out that NGOs were not allowing families to claim bodies for performing the last rites.
Mass burial/cremation could lead to fresh tension, Mehta said, adding NGOs were threatening the families coming forward to take bodies for burial. As senior advocate Colin Gonsalves insisted on mass burial as per tribal rites, the Bench took exception to it. “The whole idea seems to keep the pot boiling on bodies… Why do you create obstruction?” the CJI commented.
The hearing witnessed acrimonious scenes with Mehta questioning Gonsalves’ locus standi and the latter accusing him of trying to bully the tribal petitioners. Despite repeated demands, the Bench didn’t allow sharing of the committee’s report with the petitioners. Gonsalves accused the Manipur Government of leaking the report to the media even before the court perused it.