Bereaved father seeks Delhi HC’s intervention in bringing back Covid-19 infected son’s body from Jordan

A bereaved father has moved Delhi High Court on Saturday looking for path to Delhi International Airport Limited to grant permission for repatriation of the physique of his son, a migrant labourer who succumbed to Covid-19 on November Four in Jordan, in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Jahiruddin, by way of his advocate Subhash Chandran KR informed the court docket that his son Abdul Kalam, 26, an Indian Citizen handed away at his office in Jordan resulting from Covid-19.

After the intervention of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Jordan workplace and Embassy of India at Jordan, the employer has agreed to fulfill the bills for sending the mortal stays of Kalam to India. Thereafter, Embassy of India accomplished the formalities for repatriation of Kalam’s stays and Emirates Airline has agreed to hold his physique from Amman to Delhi Airport.

According to the petition, Lawyers Beyond Borders (LBB) India, a global group advocating for the rights of migrants made preparations for receiving, transporting and cremation of the Covid positive lifeless physique with the assistance of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Sewa Dal (SBS Foundation, Delhi) as per the request of ILO and Embassy of India at Jordan.

The petitioner additionally identified the work of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Sewa Dal, a Non-Governmental Organization and stated that it has cremated greater than 525 Covid positive lifeless our bodies up to now adhering to correct corona protocol to deal with the our bodies.

Unfortunately, even after completion of many of the formalities, Embassy of India knowledgeable the petitioner that Delhi International Airport Limited authorities have objected for sending the physique of Kalam to Delhi Airport.

“It is pertinent to mention that staffers at Delhi Airport need not handle the dead body of Abdul Kalam at all as SBS Foundation have already given an undertaking to the concerned authorities for receiving, handling and transportation of the Covid positive body of son of the petitioner. All they need to do is to issue entry passes to 4-5 volunteers from SBS Foundation along with a hearse van/ambulance for receiving the body from airport/cargo/receiving point at Delhi Airport,” the petitioner stated.

Mentioning that Ministry of Health had issued tips and framed Standard Operating Procedure for bringing again mortal stays of Covid-19 sufferers/suspects into India, the petitioner submitted that Indian airports are already granting permission for transportation of Covid positive our bodies in home carriers.

Henceforth, the petitioner urged the Delhi High Court to subject path to Delhi International Airport Limited to subject entry move to hearse van/ambulance together with 4-5 volunteers of SBS Foundation for receiving the physique of Abdul Kalam from airport/cargo/receiving level at Delhi Airport in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

The petitioner additionally informed the court docket that by way of Lawyers Beyond Borders, he despatched a memorandum to DIAL requesting for permission to repatriate mortal stays of Abdul Kalam however no reply has been acquired but.

The matter is prone to be heard subsequent week within the Delhi High Court.