Kolkata hotel fire: Journalist Debashish, family members laid to rest in Kushtia

The bodies of journalist Debashish Dutta, his wife Afsana Sharmin, their three-year-old son Swarnashish Dutta and his father-in-law Akram Hossain, who were killed in a hotel fire in Kolkata, were laid to rest in Kushtia on Saturday night (August 22).

The bodies reached their family home in Aruapara of Kushtia, at around 10:30pm, nearly 91 hours after the fire broke out at a residential hotel on Mirza Ghalib Street in Kolkata’s New Market area.

Relatives, neighbours, fellow journalists and people from different walks of life gathered at the family home after the bodies arrived. The atmosphere turned sombre as family members broke down in tears upon seeing the four bodies together.

In accordance with the family’s wishes and religious traditions, the victims were given separate final rites.

Debashish Dutta and his three-year-old son Swarnashish were taken to Kushtia Central Mahashmashan, where their cremation was completed according to Hindu religious customs.

The funeral prayers for Afsana Sharmin and her father Akram Hossain were held at the Upazila Model Mosque in Kuthipara. They were later buried at the Kushtia municipal cemetery.

The deaths of four members of the same family in the Kolkata hotel fire had plunged Kushtia into mourning. Their long-awaited return home on Saturday night brought relatives, colleagues and local residents together to bid them a final farewell.