"Dr Hercules (left) was such a gentleman and a kind-hearted doctor. No one could have ever hated him," Dr Pradeep Kumar (right) said.

The last 24 hours have been beyond traumatic for one Dr Pradeep Kumar in Chennai. Not only has he lost a close friend to Covid-19 but also been forced to bury his friend himself when the locals did not allow for burial.

Dr Pradeep Kumar had to bury his friend and neurosurgeon Dr Simon Hercules in the middle of the night using his bare hands and a shovel at a crematorium with the help of just two hospital ward boys after the undertakers fled when a mob, protesting the internment, attacked them.

Their opposition was due to a misconception that the contagion may spread in their neighbourhood if the virus victim's burial took place.

A heartbroken Dr Kumar spoke to India Today TV about the suffering he has faced over the past day.

"I have been crying for the whole day. I don't know how many people have experienced burying someone. I have seen death in my hands but I have never buried anyone, let alone someone who was close to me," he said.

"It was very difficult, he [Dr Hercules] was such a gentleman and a kind-hearted doctor. No one could have ever hated him," he added.

MISINFORMATION TO BLAME

Despite everything, Dr Kumar does not blame the locals. He holds fake news as the biggest culprit for such attacks.

"I don't blame people for this. There is a lot of wrong information out there -- everybody wants to give their opinion on social media. There is no awareness among the public. They are lighting candles, banging utensils but they don't know why they are even doing this," he told India Today TV.

"My own mother thought lighting nine candles at 9 pm will kill coronavirus. A doctor's mother! If I can't explain things to her think about the world. People don't even know coronavirus will not spread because of a burial. The crowd wanted us to get lost with the body, they attacked us, they hit us, they made us bleed, they made us run away," a helpless and teary-eyed Dr Kumar added.

FAMILY DENIED CLOSURE

Dr Pradeep shared what happened on Sunday night.

"First we were supposed to go to a cemetery. There we came to know a lot of issues has happened so officials changed the venue. There the excavator was digging a pit (according to WHO guidelines, bodies of Covid-19 patients need to be buried 12 feet into the ground) and nearly 15 minutes in a huge mob attacked us. There were 50 to 60 people pelting stones, hitting us with big wooden sticks. They threw whatever they could find," he recounted.

"The ambulance was trashed, the windshield was completely broken and the drivers were bleeding. In fact, we had to first rush them to the hospital. I had no option so I called the police they got the situation under control," he added.

Perhaps the most heartwrenching thing about the story is that Dr Hercules's family was not even able to give him a proper send-off.

"Dr Hercules's family was there when we were attacked. His wife and son came but they had to escape after the mob came. His daughter is also Covid-19 positive, she couldn't even see her father's face for the last time," Dr Kumar said.

RESPECT DOCTORS

So, after all of this, does Dr Kumar have any request to make?

His eyes brimming with tears and his hands folded, he said, "We beg of you we [doctors] are also so scared of coronavirus like you. If we stop treating you because of our fear, there will be more casualties and more dead bodies. Then your own kith and kin will not come to bury your body. We are continuing to help people so kindly support healthcare workers," he appealed.

"Simon deserved a proper send-off. He helped so many people. He did not deserve this," were Dr Kumar's final words before he broke into more tears.

SERIES OF EVENTS

55-year-old neurosurgeon Dr Simon Hercules tested coronavirus positive in early April and had been admitted to a hospital since then. Over time his situation worsened and he was put on ventilator support. On Sunday, he suffered a heart attack and could not be revived.

After that, his body was handed over to his friends and family, who headed to Kilpauk Cemetery where the burial was scheduled. There they were informed that a mob has gathered at the spot and were redirected to another crematorium at nearby Velangadu, and the ambulance headed there.

About 60-70 people armed with stones, bricks and sticks gathered inside the crematorium and began attacking the ambulance.

The windshield of the ambulance was completely shattered and the two ambulance drivers who were shifting the body from the vehicle to the ground sustained severe injuries.

Photo: India Today

Also, two sanitation officials who were in charge of the burial were injured severely and three others were also attacked.

There were no police officials around and the wife of the deceased and his teenage son were also forced to leave the crematorium.

The ambulance drivers were covered in blood but were brave enough to put the casket back in the vehicle and drive away. Dr Pradeep Kumar followed them in his car and reached the hospital.

"Both the drivers suffered deep cuts on their scalp, requiring multiple sutures and had contusion too and I got them admitted to Kilpauk government hospital," he added.

Photo: India Today

Dr Pradeep said he picked up personal protective equipment, took two ward boys with him for help and drove the ambulance himself to the crematorium again after seeking police help.

When he reached the crematorium again, the Dr Pradeep saw police deployment in the periphery though there were still people out milling around.

"Only an eerie silence and there were none inside the burial ground. The ward boys and I hurriedly lowered the body into the pit as we were afraid that the violence may be repeated," the doctor said.

Though they placed the body on the ground, they had no one to help them to fill the grave with sand.

"There was just one shovel which I gave to one of the ward boys and two of us used our hands to fill the 8-10 feet pit. It took over an hour for us to complete the task and by then it was about 1.30 am (Monday)," he said, adding a policeman lent a helping hand towards the end.

"Even policemen were afraid of coming near us," he said.

The police has now arrested 20 people in the incident.