Odisha: Leprosy affected denied dignity, daughter, son carry body for funeral

In an inhuman act, a 60-year-old man was denied a dignified funeral in Odisha's Boudh district, because he was afflicted with leprosy. Shunned in life, Jaynarayan Sahoo, a retired bank official and a leprosy patient for a long time was outcast even in his death. He stayed in isolation and rarely came out of the house due to the social stigma attached to the disease.

On Wednesday, Jayanarayan breathed his last. However, none of the people in the Basudevpalli village of Boudh district helped with the cremation ceremony.

Unable to wait any longer, Sanjib along with Manjurani and his brother-in-law Ramesh Chandra Sasmal carried Jayanarayan's body on a cot to the cremation ground and performed the last rites.

A similar incident was reported at Saharapali of Ulunda block in Sonepur district on June 5 when villagers boycotted the cremation of a cured leprosy patient Jagyasini Bhoi (62).

OneIndia News