KATHMANDU: Two individuals have been arrested on charges of removing and selling pieces of bone and flesh from a burning corpse during a funeral at Pashupati Aryaghat.
The Gaushala Police Circle identified one of the accused as Ganesh Dhakal (Ghate), who worked as a cremator, and the other as a person who supplied firewood for the cremation. They allegedly removed and sold fragments from the cremated body of Ram Shahi, a resident of Banepa Municipality-9, Kavre.
The incident took place on Friday. According to police, both suspects took pieces of bone from the burning corpse while the funeral was ongoing and sold them.
They were arrested shortly after the theft, following complaints from Shahi’s family members. Police say Dhakal sold some bone and flesh fragments for Rs 500 to a person posing as a yogi.
Both suspects are currently held at the Gaushala Police Circle. According to DSP Sukdev Malla, they are being investigated for indecent behavior.
Police described the incident as unprecedented, noting that theft and sale of human remains from Aryaghat have not been reported before.
Investigations are ongoing to determine the final buyers and locations of the sold bones. Authorities suspect the bones may have been sold to Aghori Baba, a sect known to use human bones and flesh in their rituals, but this has yet to be confirmed.
Police further explained that Aghori followers may have employed workers at Aryaghat to extract human remains for their practices.
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