South 24 Parganas: Elderly woman found living with brother’s body

According to police sources, the residents of a residential complex in Narendrapur found foul smell emanating from the fourth floor flat of Block B, belonging to the Deys. When the building’s security guard knocked on their door, it was found open. As they went inside, they spotted Anjan’s body on bed. The neighbours immediately informed the local police.

“The body was found in a decomposed state. We will be able to know the exact cause and time of death only after the post-mortem report comes,” said a senior police officer of South 24 Parganas. Minoti had been staying with his brother alone, police said.

“She could not say much on how her brother died. It seems she is mentally challenged, but we will conduct a medical examination before we come to any conclusion. It seems Anjan died two to three days ago, and his sister had no clue what to do,” said an officer.

Police said prima facie, no foul play is suspected. However, an unnatural death case has been registered. Once the medical examination of the woman is complete, police may shift her to a hospital. The incident is a reminder of earlier instances, in which several people were found living with corpses or skeletons.

In June 2015, Partha De, a 44-year-old resident of Robinson Street in south Kolkata, was found living in his house with the skeletons of his sister and pet dog for nearly six months.

Partha’s father, Aurobindo De, had committed suicide by setting himself on fire at his Robinson Street residence. The next day, the police learnt about Partha living with a human skeleton at his residence when they wanted to hand over his father’s body. DNA tests revealed that the skeleton was of his sister, Debjani De, who used to work as a music teacher in a city school.

In another case, Shubhabrata Majumdar, 43, was detained by Kolkata Police for allegedly preserving the body of his mother inside a refrigerator for three years, after she had died at the age of 84.