The body of an Indian national has remained in the morgue of Rangpur Medical College Hospital for nearly five years due to legal complications, prolong diplomatic procedures and his family's reluctance to claim the remains.

Police and hospital authorities said the matter has been referred to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which has informed the Indian authorities. Until a final decision is made, the body will remain in the hospital morgue.

The deceased, Prabir Mondal, was the son of Mahadev Mondal of M Alam Bazar on Maitri Street in Nimcha, Uttar 24 Parganas district of West Bengal. He died on November 8, 2021, at the age of 41.

According to police, a passport recovered from Mondal's trouser pocket showed that he entered Bangladesh through Benapole Immigration on a tourist visa on March 3, 2018, and returned to India on March 16 that year. Investigators, however, found no official record of how he re-entered Bangladesh.

Police said Mondal developed a personal relationship with a woman from Dahagram in Patgram upazila of Lalmonirhat during his stay in Bangladesh. He fell ill at the woman's house and was first taken to Patgram Upazila Health Complex on November 8, 2021. He was later transferred to Rangpur Medical College Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

An unnatural death (UD) case was subsequently filed with Patgram Police Station.

Officer-in-Charge of Patgram Police Station Ramzan Ali said police had contacted Mondal's family several times, but they had shown no interest in receiving the body.

"We have informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the next course of action will depend on its decision. We are still in contact with the deceased's younger brother, Subir Mondal, but the family has not shown any willingness to claim the body," he said.

Dulal Bosunia, the official in charge of the hospital morgue, said the body has remained there since 2021.

"Once we receive instructions from the higher authorities, arrangements will be made either to hand over the body or conduct the last rites in accordance with religious customs. Our responsibility is only to preserve the body," he said.

Deputy Director of Rangpur Medical College Hospital Dr Abdul Mokaddem said the body has been kept in the morgue at the request of police.

"It will be handed over whenever the police instruct us to do so. We are only responsible for preserving the body. However, it is certainly undesirable for a body to remain in a morgue for such a long period," he said.

He added that the hospital had written to the local administration several times, but no effective resolution had been reached. According to doctors' observations, Mondal died of cardiac arrest, he added.

Human rights activist Fakhrul Anam Benju said the right to a dignified burial or cremation is recognised under international human rights principles.

"It is deeply painful and alarming from a humanitarian perspective that a body has remained in a morgue for years. The authorities of both the countries should urgently coordinate either to return the body to the family or, with the family's consent, arrange for its funeral according to religious customs in Bangladesh," he said.

"This is a clear violation of human rights. No matter how complex the legal and diplomatic procedures may be, such cases should be resolved without unnecessary delay on humanitarian grounds. One of the most fundamental rights after death is the right to a dignified final farewell," he added.

Rangpur Deputy Commissioner Ruhul Amin said the death occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, when strict cross-border restrictions were in place.

"It is possible that the Indian authorities were unwilling to receive the body at that time because of the pandemic. The matter is now being pursued through diplomatic channels, and we hope the legal complications will be resolved soon, allowing the body to be handed over to the family," he said.

He added, "The family's reluctance to receive the body is certainly a matter of concern. If the Indian authorities or the family ultimately decline to accept it, the body will be buried or cremated in Bangladesh in accordance with religious customs, subject to the necessary legal approval and the consent of the concerned authorities."