Kolkata fire 6 victims’ bodies return home
The bodies of six Bangladeshi nationals killed in a hotel fire in Kolkata have been repatriated to Bangladesh, while the seventh Bangladeshi victim was cremated in the Indian city at her family’s request.
The seven Bangladeshis were among nine people killed in the fire that broke out at Shikha Inn on Mirza Ghalib Street in central Kolkata early Wednesday, August 19.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the body of SM Alimuzzaman Saju of Satkhira was brought back through the Ghajadanga-Bhomra border on Saturday morning and handed over to his family.
Later in the afternoon, the bodies of journalist Debashish Dutta, his wife Afshana Shirmin, their nearly three-year-old son Swarnashish Dutta and Afshana’s father Md Akram Ali were repatriated through the Petrapole-Benapole border.
The body of Babu Ahmed, 37, from Aminbazar in Dhaka, was also brought back through the same border crossing.
The Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata assisted the families with the preservation, transportation and repatriation of the bodies, the foreign ministry said.
The body of Rebati Sarker, 35, of Satkhira, was cremated in Kolkata on Friday night in accordance with her family’s wishes. The Bangladesh mission provided financial and other assistance for the cremation.
The foreign ministry expressed deep condolences to the bereaved families.
The bodies of Debashish and his family left Benapole for Kushtia at around 5:30pm on Saturday after completion of the necessary legal procedures.
Debashish, 39, was the Kushtia correspondent of Ajker Patrika and Channel 9 and also served as acting editor of the local newspaper Ajker Alo.
His close friend Hafiz Al Asad Soni received the bodies at Benapole in the presence of colleagues and friends.
Family members said preparations were underway at Kushtia Mohashmashan for the cremation of Debashish and his son Swarnashish. Afshana and Akram’s bodies were to be taken to Thanapara, where arrangements had been made for their burial at a municipal cemetery.
Meanwhile, Saju’s body reached his village in Bareya under Kaliganj upazila of Satkhira at around 3pm. His janaza was held after Asr prayers at a nearby mosque, followed by his burial around 5:30pm.
Saju, 45, was a businessman and the son of late Yunus Sardar.
The fire broke out at Shikha Inn on Mirza Ghalib Street at around 2:07am on August 19. The area is home to several hotels and guesthouses popular with Bangladeshi visitors because of its proximity to New Market, a major shopping destination.
Five firefighting units were deployed and brought the blaze under control after several hours of rescue operations.
The other two victims were Indian nationals Sandip Paswan, 19, from Jharkhand, and Yog Narayan Aggarwal, 68, from Siliguri.
The Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata has been coordinating with Indian authorities and the victims’ families to complete the necessary formalities and facilitate the repatriation of the deceased.
