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‘Was forced to pay bribe at each stage after my daughter’s death’
A retired senior executive of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) has exposed an account of bribery and callousness in Bengaluru’s public institutions
A retired senior executive of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) has exposed an account of bribery and callousness in Bengaluru’s public institutions, recounting how officials allegedly demanded money at every step following his daughter’s death.
In a viral LinkedIn post, K. Shivakumar, former Chief Financial Officer of BPCL, described the ordeal he faced after losing his 34-year-old daughter, Akshaya -- an IIT Madras and IIM Ahmedabad graduate -- to a brain hemorrhage. “If this is the condition of a retired officer like me, what will the poor do?” he wrote, capturing the anguish that has since resonated widely across social media.
Shivakumar said he was forced to pay bribes to the ambulance staff, police officers, and civic officials as he navigated the aftermath of his daughter’s death.
‘Bribe demanded at crematorium too’
“The ambulance staff asked me to pay ₹5,000 to transport her body from Kasavanahalli to St. John’s Hospital. The police were very rude, especially the inspector,” he wrote.
“When their subordinates said we could proceed with the post-mortem, they still behaved arrogantly. Only after my daughter’s former employer intervened did the officer change his tone.”
The retired officer said the harassment continued even after the post-mortem.
“They demanded money at the crematorium too, and I paid that as well,” he said. “Later, when I went to the police station to collect the FIR and post-mortem report, they again demanded money. There were no CCTV cameras where the bribes were being taken -- making it impossible to prove anything.”
Death certificate from BBMP also required bribe
According to his post, obtaining a death certificate from the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) required repeated visits and another bribe. “We had to visit the BBMP office for five days. Finally, the certificate was issued only after I paid more than the official fee,” he said.
Shivakumar ended his post questioning whether compassion still exists within the system. “When someone is already grieving and the system still exploits them, one wonders -- are they even human? Do they have families?” he wrote. “Can Bengaluru be saved from this anarchy? Can people like Narayana Murthy, Azim Premji, or Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw save this city? They talk a lot about Bengaluru... but will they act?”
The post triggered widespread outrage, prompting swift action from the police. Whitefield Division Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) K. Parashurama confirmed that two officials from Bellandur Police Station — PSI Santosh and Constable Goraknath — had been suspended pending an internal inquiry. “A preliminary investigation has been initiated. We will take appropriate action based on the findings,” Parashurama told Hindustan Times.
Political leaders also weighed in. JDS Youth Wing President Nikhil Kumaraswamy posted on X, “This is not only bribery; it is cruelty. Every official involved must be punished. How can a grieving father be treated this way?”
