Bhubaneswar: In a startling turn in the Keonjhar skeleton case, Jitu Munda, the tribal man who carried his sister’s skeletal remains to a bank to prove her death, has refused to seek any action against the officials who allegedly harassed him, saying he has already received the money due.
Munda (50), a native of Dianali village under Erendei gram panchayat in Patana block of Keonjhar district, said, “I have received the money deposited in my sister’s name after carrying her skeletal remains to the bank. They (the bank) got proof of my sister’s death and released the money immediately. It is true that they harassed me, but I do not want any action against them after receiving the money. They delivered the cash to my home.”
“What is the point of taking action against officials after getting the money?” he said, adding that he was not ashamed of the entire episode.
“Had I not brought the skeletal remains to the bank, they would not have given our family’s money deposited in my sister’s name. I have not done anything wrong,” he said.
Jitu, a bachelor who lived with his 56-year-old widowed sister, who died on January 26, 2026, said he did not regret exhuming her remains.
“Now people say it was wrong to dig out the remains of a dead person. But I had no alternative, as bank officials wanted the thumb impression of my sister, who had died three months ago,” said Jitu, who belongs to the Munda tribe.
The tribal man exhumed the skeletal remains of his sister, Kalra Munda (56), who died in January. He then walked about 3 km to the Maliposi branch of Odisha Grameen Bank and presented them as proof of her death. A video of Munda carrying the skeleton has since gone viral on social media.
Jitu said he was emotionally attached to his elder sister, Kalra Munda. Both of them lived together, while his elder brother, Raibu Munda (now deceased), and younger brother, Shankar Munda, lived separately in the village.
“I used to cook for and feed my elder sister when she was bedridden. Her death was a great blow to me. But she has blessed me. I have received around Rs 15 lakh from different people for carrying her skeletal remains,” Jitu told a group of journalists who visited his village on Sunday.
Kalra Munda had deposited Rs 19,300 at the Maliposi branch of Odisha Grameen Bank after selling the family’s oxen.
She had married Tadia Munda of Rameikhamar village (Gandia Tahasil) in Dhenkanal district. After her husband’s death, she returned to her paternal home in Dianali village about 40 years ago with her child. The child also died some time later. Since then, she had been living with her brother Jitu Munda, an official said.
Asked about the money received from his sister’s bank account, Jitu said the amount of Rs 19,402 (including interest) was divided into three parts. He received one share, his elder brother’s widow received another, and his younger brother, Shankar Munda, also received an equal share.
However, the money received from the government and other donations has been deposited in Jitu’s account at a bank in Patana.
Jitu said he has so far spent Rs 20,000 on preparations for a community feast to be held for villagers on May 6. “Though we performed my sister’s last rites after her death in January, we have to perform them again now because her skeleton was dug out of the grave, according to Munda tribe traditions,” he said.
Apart from being included in the state government’s social security schemes, Jitu has received financial assistance from various sources. Physics Wallah donated Rs 10 lakh, the highest amount, while Thaagam Foundation gave Rs 1 lakh, Khidmat Foundation contributed Rs 50,000, and AAP MLA Sanjay Singh donated Rs 50,000. Others contributed Rs 95,000.
The Keonjhar District Red Cross Society donated Rs 30,000, the local Patana MLA gave Rs 10,000, the Keonjhar MP Rs 5,000, Keonjhar district BJD Rs 20,000, Odisha Congress Rs 24,000, and Youth Congress Rs 50,000.
Though Jitu Munda has forgiven the erring bank officials, a state government administrative inquiry into the matter is underway.
Odisha Revenue Minister Suresh Pujari held the bank officials responsible for the entire episode. The state government will recommend action against them, he said.
