Family of Jharkhand man who died in Dubai waiting for his body for nearly a month

The family said have been in touch with authorities but due to bureaucratic hurdles, his body is still lying at the mortuary of a hospital in Dubai.

The family of a 40-year-old man from Jharkhand’s Giridih district, who died while working at a high-rise building in Dubai in November, is waiting for his body for nearly a month.

The family of a man who died in Dubai has been waiting for his body for weeks. (Shutterstock)

The family of Sukhdev Mahto, a resident of Ambadioh village under Dumri police station, said they have been in touch with authorities but due to bureaucratic hurdles his body is still lying at the mortuary of a hospital in Dubai.

“We had received news of Sukhdev’s death the same day through a friend working with him. But unfortunately, we are still waiting for his body for holding last rites,” Jogeshwar Mahto, Sukhdev’s brother-in-law, said.

His family approached Dumri MLA Jagarnath Mahto for and the legislator said he brought the matter into the notice of external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Thursday.

“I spoke to the minister soon after I received information about the case. On her directive, I have mailed her all the details provided by the family,” Jagarnath Mahto told the Hindustan Times.

According to government figures, there are some six million Indian migrants in the Gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Oman that have long been top destinations for millions of poor labourers, most of whom work in construction, transport and other low-paying sectors.

The government and non-governmental groups have received hundreds of complaints from migrant workers, ranging from non-payment of wages to torture and abuse over the years.

Sikandar Ali, who runs a support group ‘Pravashi Bhartiya’ in Giridih for workers abroad, said the family is in distress and that Sukhdev’s was not the sole incident of an unwanted delay in bringing back the bodies of citizens working abroad.

“In another case, the body of Nunchand Mahto, a resident of Tirla village under Bagodar police station, was brought home after six months in January this year,” said Ali.