Woman’s body buried mistaking it for man

Manama : In a bizarre goof up, the dead body of a woman was buried mistaking it for a man’s corpse in Hidd Graveyard on Thursday.

The woman’s body, which was supposed to be buried in Muharraq, was handed over to the wrong family by the morgue, according to a report by Al Ayam daily.

When the woman’s family ‘shockingly’ realised the truth, they demanded to exhume her body from Hidd Graveyard and transfer it to Muharraq so that Ghusl (washing and shrouding) could be done as per the teachings of Islam. 

Meanwhile, though the man, who laid the corpse in the grave, realised that it was a woman’s body, he kept quiet out of confusion. 

When the burial and other rituals were completed, the woman’s family members turned up at the graveyard and demanded for her body.

“Removing the corpse is the right thing to do. The Ghusl wasn’t done in compliance with the instruction of Sharia laws. The man’s body was decomposed, as his body was found at his residence a few days after his death. In this case, Ghusl is only done by pouring water inside the grave,” said Gathering of National Unity Chairman and the area’s preacher Shaikh Abdullatif Al Mahmood, who was present at the burial in Hidd.

“But in the woman’s case, her body should be properly washed and shrouded, before the burial,” he added.

Later, the woman’s body was dug out of the grave and buried in Muharraq Graveyard as per her family members’ wish. However, the man’s body was handed over to his family members and was buried in Hidd, as initially planned.