Lucknow:
On camera, a policeman and a rickshaw-puller are seen carrying a dead body wrapped in a white sheet to the ghats of river Ganga. They then tie its legs with a rope and abandon it in the water. The footage, filmed by local media in Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh, led to a constable being suspended.
Constable Gulab Singh, said in his defense, "we are just following the instructions of the senior inspector who asked us to get rid of this body."
The Ganga flows through the heart of this city, 100 kms from Allahabad.
For the last few weeks, bodies have been washing up on the river banks, prompting local reporters to investigate.
The picture that is emerging is that of corrupt policemen exploiting a government scheme that provides Rs 2700 for the cremation of any homeless person in the state.
Instead of last rites being performed, the bodies are being abandoned in the river.
Sanjay, a rickshaw-puller, makes his living by ferrying dead bodies from the mortuary of the local state-run hospital to the ghats along the river banks. He usually gets paid Rs 500 per. For homeless or unclaimed bodies, he says, he is offered Rs 50. "I'll give another Rs 200 to the boatman," he says. "We are doing this on the instructions of the inspector, who asks us to get rid of the bodies."
Senior police officials refused to comment on the signs of venality in a ritual meant to endow some dignity and humanity on those who have died without anyone to care for them.
They did not vouchsafe for an inquiry.