PATNA: A 65-year-old woman, Gahwa Devi, allegedly committed “Sati” by jumping on the funeral pyre of her husband Ramcharitra Mandal at Parmaniya village in Sahrasa district, 200 km from Patna on Saturday noon. Mandal, a cancer patient had died on Saturday morning. She jumped into the pyre after her family members left cremation ground. Confirming the incident, the police said Gahwa Devi had forewarned her family members about her intention to commit Sati.
Eye witnesses told the police several villagers were present at the funeral but they did not prevent her from jumping on the pyre. Gawha used to tell her children she loved her husband very much and would not like to live without him. The police have registered a case against unknown villagers. The woman’s son denied the incident, saying his mother died hours after his father passed away and they cremated her at the same site where his father was cremated. “My mother died of heart failure due to shock over my father’s death,” he said. The SP, who rushed to the village to investigate the incident, said funeral pyres in Saharsa area are traditionally made of timber, sandalwood, cow-dung cakes and other combustible materials. They, on an average, are around four feet high and burn for a long time.
