Kochi family deprived of final kiss, proper funeral for mother as morgue malfunction leaves body decomposed

Kochi: A grieving family preparing to give a final farewell to their mother was forced to spray perfume around her coffin to mask the unbearable stench from her decomposing body, cutting short funeral rituals and denying her children even the final kiss customary in Christian rites.

The family of Jessy Paily (65) of Paruvathuruthu in North Paravur in Kochi, alleges that the deterioration occurred after her body was kept in the freezer at the North Paravur Taluk Hospital mortuary. Even the burial had to be advanced by over two hours, with the family rushing through the rituals as relatives struggled to remain near the coffin.

“From the moment mother’s body was moved into the coffin, there was a terrible odour. People couldn’t even stand near it. Everyone had to stand around after spraying perfume. As per Christian rites, we could not even give mother a final kiss,” Jessy’s son Vinesh told Onmanorama.

“The burial, originally scheduled for 5 pm, had to be moved up; we rushed through the rituals at home by 2:45 pm and buried her by 3 pm. When relatives and locals arrived asking what happened to someone who died only yesterday, we had no answers,” he said.

According to the FIR registered by Vadakkekkara police, Jessy collapsed due to some unknown reason on September 16 between 7 am and 8.15 am. She was rushed to Don Bosco Hospital in North Paravur, where the doctor confirmed her death.

According to Vinesh, she accidentally fell in the bathroom the previous day. As she had suffered visible injuries, the police registered an unnatural death case and ordered an autopsy. Around 4.30pm on September 16, her body was kept in the mobile freezer at the Taluk Hospital mortuary.

The family came to know of the alleged problem the next morning, September 17, when the body was taken to the Ernakulam Government Medical College Hospital at Kalamassery for post-mortem examination.

Vinesh said the police surgeon alerted them that the body had already begun decomposing.

“The upper portion of the body was severely damaged, with the skin peeling off. Only the back side had frozen. The surgeon suspected right then that the freezer had malfunctioned. Because the body was deteriorating rapidly with every passing minute, he advised us to perform the burial as soon as possible,” he said.

Vinesh initially raised the matter with the Vadakkekkara police and Paravur municipal chairman but did not pursue a public complaint after receiving verbal assurances that the issue would be addressed. Moreover, he was busy with the rituals. However, the matter turned into a controversy after local media reported the incident.

Hospital release triggers dispute
The hospital subsequently issued a press release claiming that the body had already been decomposing for three days when it was brought to the mortuary. The release also described the criticism and reports on social media and local media as an attempt to defame the institution.

The claim angered the family. Sources later said staff had apparently confused Jessy’s case with that of an unidentified decomposed body of a drowning victim that had arrived at the hospital and was commenting on that. The hospital reportedly attempted to withdraw the press release after somebody pointed at the lack of clarity in it, according to sources.

Paravur Municipal Chairman Ramesh D Kurup told Onmanorama that, based on an explanation obtained from the hospital superintendent, the hospital maintained that Jessy’s body had been brought by police in connection with an unnatural death case involving the family’s suspicions of foul play.

Since it was a police case, hospital staff claimed they had not examined the body before placing it in the freezer and suggested that it could already have begun decomposing before being brought to the mortuary.

However, Vinesh and the police disputed this version. Sources at the Vadakkekkara police station said officers had examined Jessy’s body at Don Bosco Hospital in Paravur around 2.30 pm on September 16, where she had been declared brought dead. The police said there were no signs of decomposition at that time.

The police also clarified that the body was transported and shifted to the Taluk Hospital mortuary by the relatives, and not by the police.

Chairman admits freezer fault
Kurup acknowledged that the mortuary freezer had technical problems. “Although the temperature display was showing normal readings, cooling was not being distributed properly due to an internal technical glitch. Since it could not be repaired, we urgently sanctioned ₹10 lakh to procure a new unit, and work orders have already been placed,” he said.

Attempts to contact the Taluk Hospital superintendent and the official hospital desk went unanswered. However, hospital sources said that the superintendent had submitted an internal report on the matter to the District Medical Officer (DMO), Ernakulam.

Vinesh has since submitted written complaints to the Health Minister and the DMO and is preparing to approach the Chief Minister.

“Having naturally expected that our mother’s body would be preserved safely and with dignity, this experience has caused us profound sorrow and mental trauma. Moreover, they claimed the body was three days old. Seeing her body in a decomposed state when we were meant to pay our last respects was heartbreaking. We demand an urgent, thorough investigation into this grave lapse and strict action against those responsible,” he said in his complaint.