Body of Kolkata hotel fire victim from Satkhira repatriated to Bangladesh
Photo Collected
The body of Alimuzzaman Saju, a Bangladeshi national who died in a hotel fire in Kolkata, returned to his home country on Saturday via the Bhomra land port. The remains arrived at the border crossing at 12:15 p.m. before being transported by ambulance to his village of Boreya in the Kaliganj Upazila of Satkhira for burial.
Saju was one of seven Bangladeshi nationals who perished in a fire at the Shikha Inn residential hotel on Mirza Ghalib Street in Kolkata’s New Market area on August 19. The blaze claimed a total of nine lives.
Family members, including his younger brother Mahmudul Hasan Dipu, had gathered at the Bhomra border from early morning to receive the remains. The body had been transported by road from the Peace World mortuary in Kolkata’s Park Circus area to the Ghojadanga immigration checkpoint.
Sajib Bala, the officer-in-charge of the Bhomra land port immigration checkpost, confirmed that Indian authorities handed over the body shortly after noon. The process was completed within 15 minutes, allowing the family to take custody of the deceased.
Omar Faruq Akand, an official at the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata, stated that the mission provided full logistical and administrative support to facilitate the repatriation. The government of Bangladesh covered all expenses associated with the return of the victims’ remains.
Among the other Bangladeshi victims was Reboti Sarkar from Tetulia village in Kaliganj. According to her son, Anik Sarkar, the family opted to conduct her last rites in Kolkata due to personal circumstances. The funeral was held at the Nimtala crematorium late Friday night following the arrival of her husband and son from abroad.
The remaining five victims—four from Kushtia and one from Dhaka—are expected to be repatriated through the Benapole port in Jashore later today. The Deputy High Commission confirmed that there are no records of additional Bangladeshi citizens currently receiving hospital treatment in connection with the fire.
Preparations for Saju’s funeral were underway in Boreya village throughout the day, managed by his elder brother, Shaheb Sardar, who oversaw the arrangements at the family home.
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