Slain East Delhi Sanitation Worker Cremated Amid Family Outcry in Kalyanpuri

The family of a 28-year-old outsourced sanitation worker who was stabbed to death on duty in east Delhi’s Kalyanpuri alleged that the Delhi Police cremated his body on Tuesday without their direct consent, after coercing a relative to sign the release documents.

The victim, Anil Kumar, a resident of Ghaziabad, was attacked on Sunday morning while working as a helper on a municipal corporation garbage pickup vehicle. Police arrested the 40-year-old accused, Nihal, on Monday after CCTV footage captured the incident. Investigators stated that Nihal had a personal dispute with the vehicle's driver, Gulshan Kumar, and mistakenly attacked Anil due to their physical resemblance.

Following the autopsy, tensions flared on Tuesday over the handover of the body. Gautam Chander, the victim’s cousin, alleged that seven police officers went to the residence of Kumar's sister, Sunita, and forced her brother-in-law, Suraj, to sign the handover papers.

According to Chander, the family was unaware that the post-mortem examination had already taken place. The body was brought to the family’s residence in Khoda, leading to five to six hours of protest. Chander stated that after pressure from political leaders and because the body had begun to decompose, the family proceeded with the cremation at around 2pm at the Hindon cremation ground.

Police denied keeping the family uninformed. A senior police officer said authorities spent three days trying to persuade Kumar's father and brother to accept the body for last rites, and took Suraj for the formalities only after they refused.

In connection with the protests, police detained Aam Aadmi Party MLA Kuldeep Kumar from his east Delhi residence at 5am under Section 65 of the Delhi Police Act, alleging he was inciting unrest and calling for road blockades on NH-24. He was released around 3:30pm.