Keonjhar: In a harrowing incident that has sparked national outrage, a 42-year-old tribal man in Odisha’s Keonjhar district was forced to carry his deceased sister’s skeletal remains to a bank to prove her death. Jeetu Munda, a resident of Mallipasi village, walked nearly three kilometres in the intense summer heat on Monday with the remains on his shoulder after bank officials reportedly refused to release savings without the account holder’s physical presence or complex legal documentation.
The victim, Kakra Munda, had passed away two months ago after a life marked by tragedy, having outlived both her husband and her only son. Jeetu, struggling with poverty, had attempted to withdraw approximately Rs 19,300 left in her account to cover his basic needs and debt. However, despite explaining that his sister was deceased, Jeetu claims he was repeatedly told by bank staff that he must either “bring the account holder” or provide a legal heir certificate—a document that is often difficult and time-consuming for marginalized tribal communities to obtain.
Taking the officials’ demands literally in his desperation, Jeetu exhumed the remains and trekked to the bank branch. The sight of a man carrying a skeleton through the village and into the commercial area left onlookers in shock and has raised serious questions about the lack of empathy and administrative flexibility shown toward the state’s most vulnerable populations.
Local authorities have since intervened following the public outcry. District officials have launched an inquiry into the bank’s conduct and the procedural hurdles that led to this extreme act. Meanwhile, social activists are calling for a simplified process for legal heir verification in tribal belts to ensure that such a grotesque “test of life” never occurs again.
