Hospital employee demands Rs 50,000 bribe to release son’s body; parents beg for money on streets

SAMASTIPUR: An elderly Bihar couple begged for money to pay a Rs 50,000 bribe to hospital employees in order to get their son’s body released from the hospital. The incident took place in Samastipur, Bihar. An employee of a government hospital had allegedly asked for a bribe of Rs 50,000 to release the youth’s body. The helpless parents, who did not have the money, were forced to beg on the streets. A video of the couple begging has been widely circulated on social media.

“Some time ago my son had gone missing. Yesterday, we received a call that my son’s body is at Sadar Hospital in Samastipur. A hospital employee has asked for Rs 50,000 to release my son’s body. We are poor people; how can we pay this amount?" said the youth’s father.

Majority of the employees in the hospital are on contact basis and often do not receive salaries on time. There have been past incidents in which the staff allegedly took money from the relatives of patients. Strict actions will be taken in the incident, said the authorities.