Keonjhar: Trouble for Jitu Mundu, who carried his dead sister’s skeletal remains on his shoulder to Odisha Grameen Bank branch in Odisha’s Keonjhar in an attempt to retrieve over Rs 19,000 from her account, seems far from over.
He now has to perform the last rites of his deceased sister once more and organise a customary feast for community members, as per Ho tribal traditions. “It is unfortunate. As per our tradition, anyone who buries a body must perform the last rites. Since the burial was done again, he has to conduct the rituals again. We will consult his family and villagers and guide him accordingly,” Adivasi Ho Samaj Mahasabha president Goura Charan Munda told TOI.
Jitu said that he was relieved having received the money and would follow the community’s tradition and organise a feast as per his capacity.
According to sources, the 50-year-old tribal man from Dianali village in Patna block had been attempting to withdraw the amount, which his unmarried sister had deposited after selling her oxen. Her husband and only child died earlier, leaving Jitu as her sole surviving relative. Bank officials had reportedly asked for the account holder or proper proof of death (death certificate), which the Jitu, unfamiliar with bureaucratic procedures, found difficult to understand. Following which, he headed to the bank, seeking to withdraw the deposit, passbook in hand and his sister’s skeletal remains on his shoulder.
The incident sparked widespread outrage after videos went viral.
The matter was later resolved, with the bank settling the claim amount of Rs 19,402 in the name of three legal heirs and the district administration providing additional support of around Rs 30,000 from the District Red Cross Fund, following the intervention of Chief Minister Mohan Majhi, who also ordered Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC), Northern Division, Sangram Keshari Mohapatra to conduct a detailed inquiry into the incident.
Reported Incident at Odisha Grameen Bank of claimant bringing sister’s skeleton for death claim process.
We would like to submit that, today the Government Authorities have issued the Death Certificate and Legal Heir Certificate. Immediately on receipt of these documents, Bank…
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Mohapatra, who met district officials in Keonjhar on Wednesday evening, visit the bank on Thursday. He is also scheduled to visit Dianali village under Patna police limits.
Meanwhile, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed the Keonjhar collector and SP to conduct an inquiry and submit an action taken report within a week. It also asked the chairman of Odisha Grameen Bank to submit a separate action taken report within the same time-frame.