An otherwise uneventful Sunday afternoon for the residents of Ghaziabad’s Shakti Khand-2 ended in a bizarre manner when a body was buried in an empty plot in their area.
The plots, numbered 170, 171 and 172, allegedly belonged to Tulsi Gaur, a retired IAS officer who buried the body of his dead wife in an area nestled in the bylanes of a residential area. When residents raised objections to the burial, Gaur reportedly said,
It is my property and I can do it (bury the body). I have studied the law.
Members from the Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA) immediately called police, but weren’t satisfied with their response.
Police also spoke in his favour. They said that they had received orders from the top. How can they allow him (Gaur) to bury someone in a residential area?Prem Kumar Goswami, Vice-President, Residents’ Welfare Association to The Quint
The uproar around the burial certainly highlights the ambiguity around the legalities involved in burial customs and more importantly, whether or not burials can happen in a private property.
The Religion Quotient
In India, burial customs and rites are governed by the various religious laws. These are then further divided based on castes and sub-sects, with each division falling under the purview of laws unique to them.
According to primary Hindu Laws, upon death, the body is generally cremated in a funeral pyre, at a cremation ground.
In the Hindu Law, a body is cremated in an authorised ground, immediately after which a death certificate is issued.R Narayan, Advocate
However, Narayan does note the presence of several sub-castes and divisions within the Hindu system which may prescribe different laws with respect to burial customs.
The Legal Site of Burial
Is it legal to bury a body in a private property as opposed to an official burial ground?
Legal burial sites and the regulations around it are generally overseen by the municipal corporation, depending upon the city plan and layout.
However, burial laws remain elusive to the Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation. “Funeral rites and burial customs are a person’s private matters. Every person has the right to follow his will,” says Arun Prakash, Special Prosecution Officer at the District Magistrate office.
There are no rules governing these matters, in my knowledge.
Priti Jaiswal, Additional District Magistrate (City) concurs with Prakash’s stance on the issue, stating that burial customs and rituals cannot be questioned. The members of the RWA lodged a complaint with her on Sunday evening, where their primary demand was that the “plots not be made into a burial ground”, she said. She also said that the residential aspect of the case falls under the purview of the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA).
As far as the legalities are concerned, she said:
As a law, a burial can happen on a private property. I have sought legal opinion for further clarity on this.
Narayan, on the other hand, disputes their claims. “Nobody can bury a body in a residential area, private property or not, the law does not permit it,” he says.
Meanwhile, the ownership of the plots 170, 171 and 172 remain a matter of contention for the residents. While Gaur claims ownership over the plots, the residents are not very convinced.
“One house been made on one of the plots, but nobody lives there. It has remained under lock and key since forever,” says Goswami.
The residents are also suspicious of the body that has been buried in the plot. While Gaur supposedly claimed that it was his wife’s body, the residents suspect some foul play.
According to an earlier TOI report, Gaur already has several legal cases slapped on him, pertaining to swindling of funds and forged bills for expenses.
Gaur was unavailable for comment.
The RWA has also submitted a complaint with the GDA requesting intervention in the case.
Officers from the GDA were unavailable for comment despite repeated attempts.
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