10‑Year‑Old Alone Drags Mother’s Body After HIV Death for Autopsy, UP Police Arrange Funeral

A 10-year-old boy in Etah carried his mother’s body alone for post-mortem after her HIV-related deiath. With no relatives or neighbours helping, police arranged the last rites.

A 10-year-old boy in Uttar Pradesh’s Etah district was left to carry his mother’s body alone for a post-mortem examination after she died during treatment for tuberculosis and HIV. The incident unfolded on Thursday morning, drawing attention to the family’s isolation and the child’s ordeal.

The boy’s mother, aged 52, had been admitted to Veerangana Avanti Bai Medical College in Etah. She passed away on Wednesday night. With no relatives present and neighbours unwilling to help, the boy accompanied hospital staff who placed her body on a stretcher and took it to the post-mortem facility. Witnesses said the child remained beside his mother’s covered remains for hours, his eyes swollen from crying, refusing to leave until officials arrived.

The boy’s father had died the previous year, also from HIV. Speaking outside the post-mortem house, the child said, “When Papa got AIDS, everyone stopped speaking to us. I used to go to school when he was alive, but after his death, I had to stop. I looked after Mummy. She was being treated in Etah and was even taken to Kanpur and Lohia Hospital in Farrukhabad. My uncle didn’t even know she died.”

As word of the situation spread, a few distant relatives eventually reached the mortuary, including an uncle who travelled from Kasganj, nearly 60 kilometres away. Only then did the boy allow himself to rest.

Local police intervened after being alerted by residents. Jaithra Station House Officer Ritesh Kumar said, “We were informed that a child was alone with the body. I sent a sub-inspector and a constable to the spot. The boy had no one, and we arranged for her last rites.”

District health officials acknowledged the case and confirmed that the woman had earlier completed treatment for tuberculosis in 2017. At that time, she had received all available government aid. “She was cured and discharged. At that time, we gave her all the benefits that govt provides,” said Etah chief medical officer Dr Rajendra Prasad. “We are now reviewing the present situation.”