Patna: In Malahi village of Sitamarhi district, grief was put on hold and mourning deferred as the body of a farmer who died of electrocution was kept in a freezer for three days – not for forensic reasons, but to complete a land transfer agreed upon by a village panchayat.The farmer, Naeem Ansari, 55, died on Jan 20 while irrigating his wheat crop in a field under the Sursand police station area. Instead of immediate last rites, his body was preserved till Jan 22 when a land registry was completed in favour of his family, after which the funeral took place.
According to police, Ansari came into contact with bare electric wires installed in a neighbouring 4.5-acre field, resulting in his death on the spot. The wires had been put up to protect crops from cattle. The field belonged to one Ratnesh Singh, a resident of the same village.Following the incident, a panchayat meeting was convened in the village. The panchayat decided that the owner of the adjoining field would transfer four kattha of land to the deceased’s family as compensation. Both sides agreed to the settlement, but with a condition — the body would not be cremated until the land was formally registered.A freezer was brought from Sursand and Ansari’s body was preserved as paperwork moved forward.Police said they reached the village after receiving information about the incident, but no written complaint was submitted. On Jan 22, the land was registered in the name of the deceased’s family members at the Parihar registration office. Soon after the documents were handed over, the body was taken out of the freezer and the last rites were performed.“Police reached the spot and took custody of the body. But the family members refused to conduct a post-mortem, citing a mutual agreement between both parties. Due to no written application from any party, Sursand Police returned empty-handed,” said SHO of Sursand police station Lal Kishore Gupta.
