"Have respect for deceased:" Kerala High Court slams heirs of late MM Lawrence for dispute over his body

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday deprecated the heirs of late CPI(M) leader MM Lawrence for continuing their dispute over donation of his mortal remains to the Ernakulam Government Medical College for medical research and educational purposes. [Asha Lawrence v. State of Kerala & Ors.]..While some of his children have claimed that Lawrence wished to have his body donated to science, one daughter Asha Lawrence has staunchly opposed the same . She is currently before the High Court for a third time seeking to bury his body in accordance with Christian religious rites. .Today, a Bench of Chief Justice Nitin M Jamdar and Justice S Manu strongly criticised the parties for agitating the issue before the Court instead of trying to settle it amicably within the family. "These are matters for the heirs to decide amongst yourselves. What is this? What kind of issues have you brought before us? These are siblings, sort it out between yourselves. These are not matters to be brought before the Court. At the most, we will appoint some senior person as a mediator...At least have some respect for the person who has passed away," Chief Justice Jamdar orally remarked. The Court ultimately passed an order to appoint a mediator agreed upon by both parties to see if it is possible to settle the matter amicably. .At least have some respect for the person who has passed away.Kerala High Court.Asha had first moved the High Court in the matter shortly after her father's demise on September 21. She contended that her father never explicitly expressed a wish to donate his body for medical purposes.She claimed that her siblings and the CPI(M)'s decision to donate MM Lawrence's body was politically driven and maintained that her father should be buried according to Christian traditions.Asha emphasized that although her father was a communist, he also had strong Christian ties. She highlighted that her parents’ marriage was solemnized in a church, and all her siblings including herself were baptized and followed Christian rituals for family occasions such as weddings and funerals.However, on September 23, the Court disposed of this first plea by directing the Principal of the Medical College to assess her objections before making a final decision. Subsequently, the Principal formed an advisory committee to review the matter.The committee relied on a body donation consent form signed by MM Lawrence and witnessed by two individuals to conclude that this consent was valid under Section 4(1) of the Kerala Anatomy Act. It, therefore, granted legal possession of the body to his son ML Sajeevan, who did not oppose the donation..Asha then moved another petition challenging the authority of the Principal to constitute the advisory committee, claiming that it violated the principles of natural justice.She argued that the hearings conducted by the Principal were unfair as she and her siblings were heard separately. She added that her sister Sujatha had formally withdrawn her consent for the body donation, which was not taken into account. This second petition was dismissed by a single-judge of the High Court on October 23. The High Court declined to interfere with the decision to donate the body..Following this, Asha moved the present appeal challenging the October 23 order contending that the single-judge had not considered many of her contentions.The Division Bench initially passed an order halting the hand-over of the body to the medical college.When the matter came up today, the Bench deemed it fit to appoint a mediator suggested by both sides so that a final decision can be taken by December 9 when the appeal will be taken up next.