New Delhi [India], May 1 : Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh on Friday raised questioned Odisha BJP Government's welfare system that forced a man to carry his sister's skeleton to the bank to prove her death after failing to withdraw Rs 20,000 of her savings.
Singh also announced financial assistance of Rs 50,000 for the tribal man.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Sanjay Singh, in a post on X, said, "The heart-wrenching video of Jitu Munda ji, who lives in Keonjhar district of Odisha, has been seen by the entire world. It was heartbreaking that in the rule of the double-engine government, which makes tall claims of development, an Adivasi brother had to take his sister's skeleton to the bank for 20 thousand rupees. I have sent 50 thousand rupees in assistance from my salary."
"State President @nishimohapatra" and the AAP team went and spoke with Jitu Munda ji; there is also a problem of water in the village, and they will resolve that too. I had studied at OSME from the same district of Odisha. Odisha owes me a debt, and I always stand with the people there," Singh's post added.
The move comes after a distressing video went viral this week in which a tribal man in Odisha's Keonjhar district is seen carrying the skeletal remains to the bank, bundled in a sack, to claim her savings.
According to Sub-Collector Uma Shankar Dalai, the man was unaware of the required legal procedures and acted out of frustration after repeated attempts to access the money without being able to show official proof of death.
"The tribal man was not aware of the procedural aspects. Out of frustration, he did this. Prima facie, it appears that since this man is not a class-I legal heir of his sister, the concerned bank rightly asked him for documents which he could not produce. Today, he will apply for the necessary documents. We are facilitating early processing of Red Cross Assistance of Rs 20,000, the death certificate and the legal heir certificate and release of the deposited money to the legal heirs in consultation with the bank," the sub-collector said.
The Indian Overseas Bank on Tuesday issued a clarification rejecting allegations that its staff demanded the physical presence of a deceased account holder for processing a withdrawal.
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