Family holds last rituals outside Guna mortuary as landlord bars body citing Navratri
The final rituals were completed with the assistance of volunteers in an open courtyard near the hospital mortuary before Pooja Rajak’s body was taken to the cremation ground
A woman’s family performed rituals outside a hospital mortuary in Madhya Pradesh’s Guna after their landlord reportedly refused to allow her body into their rented home, citing Navratri.
Pooja Rajak, 31, died during treatment for cancer at the district hospital, leaving behind two daughters and a son.
Two local volunteers helped the financially struggling family complete the rituals before taking her body to a crematorium.
The family of a 31-year-old woman who died during cancer treatment performed her pre-cremation rituals outside the district hospital mortuary in Madhya Pradesh’s Guna on Saturday after their landlord refused to allow her body into their rented home, citing Navratri observances, her father said.
Pooja Rajak, originally from Shivpuri district, died at Guna district hospital after her condition worsened. She is survived by two daughters and a son.
Her father, Pehalwan Rajak, said the family intended to bring her body to their rented accommodation in Ghosipura, where they had lived for four years. However, the landlord asked them not to do so because religious rituals were under way for Navratri.
The family chose not to contest the request, he said. With no permanent home and limited money to arrange the funeral, they instead conducted the customary rituals in an open courtyard near the hospital mortuary.
Social worker Pramod Bhargava and cow-protection volunteer Ram Singh Rajak helped the family make the arrangements. The rituals were completed with their assistance before Pooja’s body was taken to the cremation ground.
According to her father, Pooja had been living with her parents for the past few years after becoming estranged from her husband, Indore resident Rakesh Lashkari. He said she left her matrimonial home following a domestic dispute after her health deteriorated.
Lashkari travelled from Indore after learning of her death and participated in the rituals at the hospital courtyard. According to the account provided, he was accompanied by his second wife.
With PTI inputs