Videos show shrouds being removed from bodies buried near river banks in Uttar Pradesh

As horrifying visuals of suspected Covid-19 victims' bodies floating in the Ganga and buried on the banks of other rivers are making headlines, videos where people are seen uncovering the orange shrouds and bamboos near these unidentified graves have surfaced.

These burials and death rites, which garnered global attention, drew flak for the ruling Narendra Modi government and its mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The videos show workers removing shrouds and the bamboo poles that are used to mark graves. Reports claim that this is happening in in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj and Unnao.

"They didn't get proper medical attention while they were alive. So many of them didn't even receive dignified final rites, and neither any spot in government figures. Now even Ramnamis (holy shrouds) are being taken away from their graves,” Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi tweeted.

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While reports by NDTV, quoting sources, say that this was a 'cleanup exercise,' there has been no official word by the government so far.

Prayagraj DM Bhanu Chandra Goswami told The Indian Express that instructions were given to clean the ghats but denied that removal of shrouds etc was part of this order. He said that a probe has been ordered into the issue.

“We have seen the video of shrouds being removed and had discussions on the same. We have formed a committee of two senior officials who will look at all the aspects and find out who did this and what was the intention behind it.” Goswami said.

Hundreds of bodies of suspected Covid-19 victims have been found floating in the rivers and buried near the ghats in several towns in Uttar Pradesh. Locals claimed that they don't have enough wood for funeral pyres forcing them to leave bodies in the river

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) had also issued notices to the Union Jal Shakti Ministry, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, after receiving complaints about several bodies found floating in the Ganga river in the two states.