Oscar Fernandes, general secretary of the AII India Congress Committee (AICC) and member of the Rajya Sabha, said the body of the nurse Jacintha Saldanha could be brought to India only after the inquiry being conducted by the authorities in London was completed.
The 46-year-old Saldanha, who hailed from Mangalore, was working as a nurse in King Edward VII Hospital in London. She reportedly committed suicide after becoming a victim of a hoax call by two DJs from an Australian Radio Station inquiring about the condition of the pregnant Duchess of Cambridge Kate William, who was undergoing treatment at the hospital for morning sickness.
Mr. Fernandes met Carmine Barboza, the mother-in-law of Jacintha Saldanha, at her house here in Shirva and offered his condolences to the family members.
Addressing presspersons after visiting Ms. Barboza, Mr. Fernandes said that it might take three or four days time for the inquiry to be completed in the U.K. “But I cannot give any guarantee on the timeline as each country has its own system,” he said.
He said that the authorities in the U.K. could not send the body without completing the formalities. “Their system is such that they allow the family members to see the body only after the post-mortem. According to the information given to me by the Indian High Commission, the post-mortem has been completed. They have allowed family members to see the body after the post-mortem”, he said.
Mr. Fernandes said the Indian Government was in touch with the British government on the issue. “As regards compensation to the family, that is a different issue, we will discuss with the authorities concerned,” he said.
Later speaking to media persons separately here, Veronica Carnelio, president of district women’s wing of the Congress, said she and some members of the District Mahila Congress had met Carmine Barboza and other family members. The family members were in deep shock and pain. “They are upset about misleading reports appearing in a section of the media”, he said.
“The body of Jacintha would be brought here (to Shirva) and the funeral would also take place here”, Ms. Carnelio said.
