Bangladesh

Bodies of Seven Bangladeshis Killed in Kolkata Hotel Fire to Be Repatriated

21 August 2026 18:08 PM

NEWS DESK

The bodies of Bangladeshi nationals who died in a devastating fire at the Shikha Inn residential hotel in Kolkata’s New Market area are expected to be repatriated to Bangladesh by Saturday, Bangladesh officials said Friday.

Bangladesh Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata Mohammad Khaled disclosed the information at a press conference.

Five of the victims will be repatriated to Bangladesh through the Benapole border. They have been identified as Debashish Dutta, a resident of Mohini Mill area in Kushtia and Kushtia correspondent of Ajker Patrika; his wife Afsana Sharmin; their three-year-old child Shornashish Dutta; his father-in-law Md Akram Ali; and Ahmed Babu of Savar in Dhaka.

The Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata is giving top priority to completing the necessary formalities and sending the five bodies back on Friday. However, if all procedures cannot be completed within the scheduled time, their repatriation may be delayed until Saturday.

The body of S.M. Alimuzzaman, a resident of Satkhira, will be sent to Bangladesh through the Bhomra border.

Meanwhile, the family of Rebati Sarkar, a resident of Kaliganj in Satkhira, has requested that her last rites be performed in Kolkata.

Mohammad Khaled said Rebati Sarkar’s son, Anik Sarkar, had expressed the family’s desire to cremate his mother in Kolkata. The Bangladesh mission has informed the family that permission from the local West Bengal authorities will be required. The matter will also be communicated to Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Dhaka before further action is taken.

The seven Bangladeshis died in a major fire that broke out Tuesday night at the Shikha Inn residential hotel on Mirza Ghalib Street in Kolkata’s New Market area. The victims included two women and a child.

Two Indian nationals—Sandeep Paswan of Jharkhand and Yog Narayan Agarwal of Siliguri—also died in the fire. Their bodies were handed over to their families on Thursday.

Anik Sarkar said the New Market police would hand over his mother’s body to the family after the necessary documents and formalities were completed. He said the family intended to perform her last rites in Kolkata.

Meanwhile, the West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services Department has issued show-cause notices to 17 more hotels in Kolkata’s New Market area for allegedly operating without the required permissions.

Earlier, notices had been issued against nine residential hotels and four restaurants in the area.

With the latest action, a total of 26 hotels and four restaurants have now received show-cause notices from the fire department.

Bodies Kolkata Bangladeshis