Why the CPI(M) leader’s body did not make it to the autopsy table despite his willingness to donate

In its latest order, the Kerala High Court emphasized Section 4 of the Administrative Offenses Act despite Lawrence’s two children taking a stand in favor of religious funerals. “The statement by the 6th respondent (Sujat) that in October 2021 her father expressed a wish to be buried in the church, even if accepted, is of no consequence as for the purposes of section 4A(1), a mere statement of request, made by the deceased during his/her last illness can be taken into account,” said judge V.G. Arun.

The section states that if any person, in writing at any time or orally in the presence of two or more persons during his last illness, has expressed an unequivocal request that the body be used for anatomical examination and autopsy after death, the wish will be respected.

Problems of body donation

Although the Kerala High Court has preferred the oral consent of the deceased, KYS said the issues are multifaceted even if there is written and oral evidence. In most cases section 4A(2b) of the KAA, which prevents absorption if “the surviving spouse or any near relative of the deceased objects to the body of the deceased being so disposed of”, is given weight.

“Body donation can be done by submitting a letter of consent signed by the spouse, children and two witnesses to the principal of the respective medical colleges. However, if someone in the family objects, the letter will be useless. A few years ago, I helped the family of a deceased rationalist with body donation. The wife and children were in favor of the donation. Then a relative, who had not communicated with the family for decades, objected and demanded a church funeral. Finally, it was possible to ascertain the will of the deceased. However, in some cases, opposition from a random relative can disrupt plans,” he said.

The Rationalist organization also demanded a proper procedure for taking possession of the body. Except in private medical colleges, families or witnesses are expected to handover the body to the nearest medical college hospital. “Recently, a family in Idukki had to spend Rs 10,000 to arrange an ambulance to send the body to the Government Medical College in Kottayam. In one case, the hospital asked us to bear the cost of keeping the body in the morgue as there was some delay in getting it due to voltage problems in the hospital,” Sukumaran said.

Shaktidharan pointed to instances where the hospital management showed a lack of dignity towards the bodies of the dead. “Put it somewhere here,” they once said, he added. There are also complaints against the hospital staff that they complicate the admission process due to minor problems and their indifferent attitude towards the families of the deceased. Such disappointing moves come even as medical colleges struggle to find enough cadavers for their anatomy departments.

There is also a lack of uniformity in the cost of stamp paper. “In Thiruvananthapuram, the consent letter can be given to the MCH director on a stamp paper costing Rs 200. In Thrissur it is Rs 100 and stamp paper of any value, even Rs 50, is acceptable in Kozhikode Medical College,” he said. .

In the absence of written consent from the deceased, Shaktidharan said a letter from close family members – spouse or children – would be considered for donation. “Previously, to confirm that a person died a natural death, a statement from a known person is given – it can be an elected representative of a local body. Now, most of the Municipalities do not insist on this,” he said.

With the support of the KAA, medical colleges routinely take in unclaimed bodies to fill cadavers in anatomy departments. Following huge demand for cadavers from private medical colleges, the Kerala State Department of Health and Family Welfare issued an order in 2008 that allowed medical colleges and general hospitals to sell unclaimed bodies to private medical colleges at a price of Rs 40,000. According to , the government has collected Rs 3.6 crore through the sale of 1,122 unclaimed bodies to private medical colleges since 2008.

According to , the ideal cadaver student ratio is 1:10, which is difficult for many medical institutes to achieve.

As part of a ten-year awareness campaign, KYS and AT Kovoor Trust, founded in memory of the rationalist Abraham Thomas Kovoor, have been able to arrange 164 human body donations in Kerala since 1980. Rationalist and secretary of AT Kovoor Trust Dhanuvachhapuram Sukumaran said they started the campaign to secure enough corpses for medical research and also to end superstitions about ghosts and spirits.

According to Sukumaran, the first donation in Kerala took place in September 1980 when former KYS general secretary Iringal Krishnan donated the body of his mother K Kalyani to the Kozhikode Medical College. “Since then, KYS and the Kovoor Trust have arranged for the donation of 164 bodies and 360 pairs of corneas. Due to the intensive campaign in Thrissur district, 55 bodies were handed over to the medical college in Thrissur alone,” he said.