When Jitu approached the bank to withdraw the Rs 19,300 remaining balance in his sister’s account, the bank manager refused, saying either the account holder must be present or he must furnish legal heir documents.
Updated: April 28, 2026 12:09 PM IST
A man in Odisha’s Keonjhar district walked three kilometres under the scorching sun, carrying his dead sister’s skeletal remains on his shoulder to a bank in an attempt to retrieve Rs 19,300 from her account.
The man, Jitu Munda, is from Keonjhar’s Dianali village. His sister, Kakra Munda, held an account at Odisha Gramin Bank, Mallipasi. Kakra died two months ago. Her husband and only child died earlier, leaving Jitu as her sole surviving relative.
When Jitu approached the bank to withdraw the Rs 19,300 remaining balance in his sister’s account, the bank manager refused, saying either the account holder must be present or he must furnish legal heir documents.
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Jitu had no death certificate
A tribal man with no education, Jitu had no death certificate or succession papers and returned helpless after not being able to understand the complex process.
On Monday, Jitu went to the village cremation ground. He dug out his sister’s remains, wrapped the skeleton in cloth, and walked 3 kms to the bank in blazing heat.
Once Jitu reached the bank, the sight left the locals stunned. While some wept, others fumed in anger. Villagers accused the bank of extreme insensitivity. “Is it this hard for a poor man to get his own money?” they asked.
Locals said the bank could have verified with the Sarpanch or done a field visit, but paperwork won over compassion.
Police intervene, assure action
Police reached the spot after being alerted, calmed Jitu and took charge. Police said the case would be handled on humanitarian grounds and sought a response from the bank.
On the same issue, state minister Suresh Pujari said, “I have talked to the administration regarding this. Action needs to be taken against the bank employees for this inhuman approach. I will instruct the senior officials at the bank to not treat this as an isolated case and punish the accused.”
“The death certificate of the person wasn’t enough for the bank employees which compelled the man to dig out his dead sister’s remains. Such an incident has never happened in India. The government has taken serious note of the conduct of the bank employees and will take up the matter at the appropriate level to ensure that the accused are punished.”
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What the Sub Collector said
On the incident, Uma Shankar Dalai, Sub Collector, Keonjhar, said that tribal man was not aware of the procedural aspects and out of frustration, he did this. Prima facie, it appears that since this man is not a class-I legal heir of his sister, the concerned bank rightly asked him for documents which he could not produce. “Today, he will apply for the necessary documents. We are facilitating early processing of Red Cross Assistance of Rs 20,000, the death certificate and the legal heir certificate and release of the deposited money to the legal heirs in consultation with the bank.”
