Chikkaballapur, 26 April

The cremation of a 50-year-old man, Kodandappa, was delayed for nearly 72 hours due to a land dispute between family members. Kodandappa, a daily wage labourer, died of a heart attack on Wednesday. His family planned to bury him on land currently under legal dispute, but his brother Nareppa’s family objected, claiming ownership of the land.

Despite repeated pleas from villagers and local leaders, neither side relented. Kodandappa’s mother Narayanamma insisted on cremating him on the disputed land, while the opposing family refused to allow it. The body remained in a freezer box outside his home as the deadlock continued.

Tahsildar Anil Kumar visited the village and urged the family to bury the body in the government graveyard, but the family refused. As tensions escalated, police warned that they would take over cremation duties if an agreement wasn’t reached.

Finally, on Friday evening, BN Gangadhar, State Organising Convenor of Dalit Sangharsha Samiti, intervened and persuaded the family to proceed with the burial on an adjacent plot. The cremation was carried out around 5pn, nearly 70 hours after death, bringing an end to the impasse.