Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi on Thursday sought a judicial enquiry into the COVID-19 situation in Uttar Pradesh. As cases in India continue to rise, dead bodies have now emerged floating in rivers and water bodies in various states of India. In Uttar Pradesh, dozens of decomposing bodies have been found in the Ganga in Ballia and other parts of the state. Reports also indicate that there have been mass burials on the river banks in other parts of UP.
"Bodies are floating in the ganga in Ballia and Ghazipur. Reports are coming in of mass burials on the banks of the river in Unnao. Official numbers from cities like Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Jhansi and Kanpur appear to be grossly under-reported," Gandhi tweeted, sharing a slew of news reports.
Calling the situation in Uttar Pradesh "inhuman and criminal", she called for an immediate judicial enquiry headed by a High Court Judge. "The government is busy image building while people are suffering unimaginably," she alleged.
The Unnao district administration has ordered a probe after some bodies were found buried on the Ganga riverbank in the Bighapur Patan tehsil area, officials said on Thursday. The district administration swung into action after locals spotted bodies buried on the Baksar ghat of the river with some photographs of the bodies too going viral on social media, they said.
It is not only UP that has been thus affected. While at least 25 bodies were found in Uttar Pradesh's Ghazipur district, another 71 were fished out in Bihar's Buxar district. The situation has triggered fears among local residents in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh that bodies of COVID-19 victims were being dumped in the river.
(With inputs from agencies)
