In Ambala, cops forced to open fire to disperse villagers opposing cremation

Jaskaran Singh | TNN | Apr 28, 2020, 09:02 IST

The villagers opposed cremation and started pelting stones

AMBALA: Opposing cremation of a woman, suspecting her to have died of Covid-19, some residents of Chandpura village in Ambala district on Monday clashed with the police and pelted stones at them, which led to the cops firing in the air to disperse the crowd.
The deceased, a resident of Topkhana area in Ambala Cantonment, was in her early 60s and had died earlier in the day at the Cantt civil hospital.
The police said violating the lockdown norms, the residents gathered at the cremation ground in Chandpura village to oppose her cremation and started pelting stones at both cops and health workers. In a bid to disperse the gathering, the police opened fire in the air and cremated the body.
Ambala civil surgeon Dr Kuldeep Singh said, “The woman was admitted to the Ambala Cantonment civil hospital after asthma attacks. On Monday afternoon, the woman passed away while undergoing treatment. We collected her samples for Covid-19 testing and released her body for cremation. The report of her test is still awaited.”
The procedure for cremation of a suspected or a confirmed Covid-19 patient is the same and standard SOPs have to be followed, he said, adding that although all safety procedures were followed, the villagers opposed her cremation.
Ambala Cantonment DSP Ram Kumar said, “When we reached Chandpura village to cremate the woman’s body, some villagers gathered and started obstructing the cremation. We tried telling that all safety measures are being taken, but they did not listen and started pelting stones. So, the police had to fire in the air. Later, we performed the cremation following all safety norms. Strict action will be taken against the errant villagers.”
Defending villagers’ protest, a Chandpura resident said, “The woman was a resident of Topkhana area, and she should have been cremated in her area as she did not have any link to Chandpura village. The cremation ground of our village is meant for the villagers only.”