No peace even in death

Villagers deny funeral rites to heart attack victim

December 04, 2020 10:48 pm | Updated 10:49 pm IST - BHADRADRI-KOTHAGUDEM

An outrageous act of some villagers of Vijayalaxmi Nagar in Yellandu mandal, who allegedly prevented the bereaved family members of a 55-year-old person from bringing the latter's body into their native village for last rites late on Wednesday night, sent shock waves in the Yellandu coal belt area.

The wife, son and daughter of the deceased identified as Venugopal, a watchman at a private firm in Hyderabad,who died of heart attack on Wednesday, were refused entry into the village with the body on Wednesday night.

Some elders of the community to which they belong reportedly denied them entry into the village allegedly nursing a grudge for failing to obey their diktats, before they left for Hyderabad in search of livelihood over ten years ago, sources said.

This has forced the three bereaved members of the family to shift the body to the Vaikunta Dhamam about one km away from the village and stay at the funeral ground that particular night.

On Thursday afternoon, they performed the last rites of the deceased at the Vaikunta Dhamam in the presence of some of their relatives.

They left for their relative’s house in Yellandu town the same day.

When contacted, Yellandu tahsildar Mastan Rao said the field level functionaries of the gram panchayat visited Vijayalaxmi Nagar on Thursday.

We will conduct a meeting in the village soon to prevent recurrence of such incidents, he added.

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