Delay in Death Certificates Worry Madina Accident Victims’ Kin
A death certificate is the most important document for the relatives to claim compensation amounts or for any property-related issues.
Hyderabad: With no clarity on when the Saudi Arabian government will issue death and burial certificates for 45 people who died in the Madina road mishap, the families of the victims are spending anxious days.
A death certificate is the most important document for the relatives to claim compensation amounts or for any property-related issues. However, as the victims died in Saudi Arabia, the death certificates must be issued by the foreign government.
Some relatives say they are getting confused signals. Some say the death certificates were already sent through courier, while others say that the certificates could be downloaded in the PDF format. A few others say that the certificates have been sent to the Indian Consulate in Jeddah, from where they could be taken.
As the process gets delayed, the representatives of families are knocking on the doors of the Haj Committee, Gandhi Bhavan and even the AIMIM office.
On Monday, they called on Md Asadullah, in-charge executive officer of the Haj Committee. “We are trying to get death and burial certificates, so that the issue of compensation can be pursued,” said Abdul Rahman of Moghal Nagar, Attapur, who lost five family members.
The relatives also visited the AIMIM party office seeking their intervention for the certificates and also for seeking a refund of a half of the Umrah charges from the tour operators. They say that the tour operators have to refund half the amount as the accident occurred within one week into the two-week tour.
“The remaining half of the pilgrimage included the cost of food, accommodation, hotel, boarding, and transportation and return flight. This is a major amount, hence we are seeking a refund,” said Mufti Asif, who lost six of his family members in the mishap.
Authorities in the state government are pursuing the matter with the Saudi officials, but they are clueless about the timelines. “I am in communication with the Consulate General and will raise the matter once again,” assured a member of Telangana's official delegation which visited Madina.
