6 victims reach B’desh in coffins, 1 cremated in Kol
Times of India | 23 August 2026
Kolkata: Coffins containing bodies of six of the seven Bangladeshi nationals killed in the Free School Street lodge fire crossed the border and reached the neighbouring country on Saturday evening.
The bodies of five victims — Babu Ahmed (37), a cosmetics trader from Savar; and four others from a same family in Kushtia, Debasish Dutta, a journalist of a Bangladesh daily and a TV channel, his wife Afsana Sharmin (27), their son Swarnasish Dutta (3) and Dutta’s father-in-law Akram Ali (64) — were transported through Benapole border. The sixth body, S M Alimuzzaman (48) from Satkhira, was transported through Bhomra border via Bongaon. The seventh victim Rebati Sarkar was cremated at Nimtala burning ghat on Friday night.
The hearses carrying the coffins set out for the border around 12.08 pm from Peace World at Topsia Road. The relatives had been handed over the bodies of the victims from Kolkata Police Morgue on Friday.
Md Khaled, deputy high commissioner of Bangladesh in Kolkata stated the transportation of the bodies got delayed because of procedural complications. He said, “The victims’ passports were cancelled and the foreigners registration office issued NOCs to transport the coffins to Bangladesh by crossing the border. The ministry of foreign affairs bore the expense for transportation. Even the cost of Rebati’s cremation was borne by the ministry.”
Zinnur Rahman, a kin of Ahmed said, “We reached Benapole around 4.15pm and our other relatives were waiting with a hearse there. From Friday evening we had been waiting to take his body back and finally, we could start the journey from Kolkata on Saturday morning.”
Md Aminul Haque, kin of S M Alimuzzaman, cried, “We are now preparing to perform his last rites. He had been to Bengaluru for treatment but little did we know that his visit to Kolkata would usher in his death.”
Sarkar’s son Anik stated, “We cremated her body late on Friday night. My sister Trisha is in an inconsolable state. Though my mother was suffering from pain due to breast cancer, we had faith that she would be cured with treatment. None of us were ready to lose her so early.”