Delhi blast: We were harassed by mortuary officials, say relatives

They came to collect the bodies of their loved ones, killed in the Delhi High Court blast, but were entangled in web of bureaucratic formalities at the Sucheta Kripalani hospital's mortuary on Thursday, leading them to give vent to emotional outbursts and some even hurling abuses at the officials.

The relatives accused the hospital authorities of hassling them and delaying handing over the bodies to them.

"First they told me to get a polythene wrapper for the body. Then after 15 minutes, they asked me to get a four metre cloth again to wrap the body. Couldn’t they tell me to get those things at the same time?” said Sukhdev Singh, who had come to collect his friend Inder Singh’s body.

Singh was called at 8 am but only handed over the body at 12:30 noon.

Shiruddin, who had arrived from Uttar Pradesh's Meerut city to collect his father, Nizamuddin’s body, had a similar tale to tell.

“Can’t they even give us a piece of cloth and plastic wrapper? As tax paying citizens, don’t we even deserve that?” he asked.

According to relatives, the hospital was taking more than two hours to release a body.

“They had asked for an identity proof from me almost two hours back and I have no idea when will I get the body,” said Naresh Kumar, a friend of deceased Vir Pal Singh.

The visitors said the hospital staff could have been more sensitive to their feelings.