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Demonetisation: Widow of the man who died standing in a bank queue, still waiting for help

While it can be debated how many deaths happened due to demonetisation, numbers and stats would never do justice to the ones who lost their lives.

• By: Anumeha Saxena |
• November 10, 2017 10:22 am

When PM Narendra Modi declared demonetisation on November 8, 2016, he ‘warned’ people to be prepared for the worst. But for some worst came in the form of death. Satish Kumar, a labourer in Keshopur Sabzi Mandi (vegetable market) in west Delhi, died of a heart attack standing in the queue of a bank on November 21, 2016.

The central government might be in denial that there was no such thing as ‘demonetisation deaths’, but it cannot deny that  a family lost its sole bread-winner because he was standing a bank queue to deposit his hard-earned money.

The business at Keshopur Sabzi Mandi was wrapping up as usual when we reached late in the afternoon. Known as Pappi there, no one knew Satish Kumar by his real name. Originally from Hansi in Hisar district of Haryana, Satish Kumar was living in Delhi for more than 30 years.

After several phone calls trying to locate Satish Kumar’s house, we reached his house in Uttam Nagar. A neighbour took us inside the house through a long and dark corridor. At the end of the corridor were stairs leading to a one-room rented accommodation, where Veena Kumari, Satish Kumar’s widow was lying down on a cot. A woman, who introduced herself as Veena’s neighour, Poonam was sitting beside her.

We asked Veena Kumari about her husband’s death and she broke down. A teary-eyed Veena Kumari recounted, “He took an off from the mandi that day (November 21, 2016) to deposit Rs 48,000 for the third time since November 8. I called him up at lunch-time to ask when he was returning and he told me that he will be back soon. After half-an-hour, I received a call telling me that he collapsed in the bank queue.”

“We rushed him to Mata Roop Rani Maggo Hospital, where the doctors weren’t able to revive him. They told us to take him to some other hospital and it was then that we rushed him to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, where they asked me to sign a paper,” says Veena Rani. Her neighbour Poonam adds, “The hospital authorities couldn’t tell her that her husband is dead. We called her brother, who lives in Paharganj. He informed other relatives.”

Satish Kumar got married to Veena Kumari in 1984. The couple did not have children. Veena Kumari used to work as a teacher at a private school before marriage but now suffers from severe arthritis and is unable to do daily chores. There is no one to look after her after Satish’s death.

When Veena says, “I received no help — financial or medical — from anyone. Congress leader Ajay Maken came and gave us Rs 50,000 at the DDU hospital. In December, Manish Sisodia visited me. He assured many things but nothing ever happened. I have not even started receiving my widow pension, even after submitting the form and required documents.”

Poonam tells us, “Veena’s landlady stopped taking rent after Satish’s death. But who knows some day Veena might be asked to vacate the house. She should at least be given a decent accommodation and medical aid should be provided to her, since there are days when she cannot even move out of her bed. Her knee pain is that bad. No relative ever comes to visit her, only her brother comes to see her.”

While it can be contested how many deaths happened due to demonetisation, numbers and stats would never do justice to the ones who lost their lives. Banks might have profited in the end, the privileged class might have been anxious initally but as always things worked out for them in the end. It was the underprivileged who had to pay the highest price of demonetisation — with their lives.