The Archdiocese of Bombay has asked its priests to follow the directives of the municipal commissioner and cremate Covid-19 victims rather than bury them.

“In a video message to priests, Cardinal Oswald Gracias suggested in view of the extraordinary circumstances they would respect the call of the municipal commissioner and cremate any novel coronavirus victims,” Father Nigel Barrett, spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Bombay, informed the Times of India.

Early this week, municipal commissioner Praveen Pardeshi had issued a directive under the Epidemic Act, 1897, stating all victims of Covid-19 would be cremated and, if a family insisted on a burial, then it would have to be done outside the city.

The circular was, however, immediately withdrawn after Minority Affairs minister Nawab Malik objected to it. An amended circular issued a few hours later said burial would be allowed if the burial grounds were large enough so as not to create the possibility of the virus spreading in the neighbouring areas. Father Barrett said in view of the amended circular, a family would be granted a burial if they insisted as long as they followed WHO guidelines.

Meanwhile, former Congress minister Naseem Khan, in a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, noted the anger in the Muslim community over a Covid-19 victim not being allowed burial at Malwani on April 1. He said the government must earmark a portion in all kabrastans across the state for victims of the pandemic.