Air India plane crash: Report says British families received 'wrong bodies' of victims; MEA responds saying 'mortal remains handled with professionalism'

The families of the Air India plane crash victims in the UK have alleged that they received wrong body parts of their loved ones, prompting a response from India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

According to a report by DailyMail, at least two of the bereaved families in the UK were allegedly sent wrong body parts, rather than those of their kin who were on board of the ill-fated Air India plane.

The report says that the 'mix-up' of the bodies was discovered when families of victims in the UK sought to identify the remains of the deceased by matching their DNA.

Going by the report, the relatives of one victim called off a planned funeral after they were informed that the coffin had 'wrong person's' body part.

In another case, the report says that “commingled” parts of more than one victim were placed in the same coffin, and the parts then had to be separated.

Responding to said report, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India has "been working closely with the UK side from the moment these concerns and issues were brought to our attention."

"In the wake of the tragic crash, the concerned authorities had carried out identification of victims as per established protocols and technical requirements. All mortal remains were handled with utmost professionalism and with due regard for the dignity of the deceased. We are continuing to work with the UK authorities on addressing any concerns related to this issue," a statement issued read.

This news comes hours ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the UK and the issue could become part of official discussions.

As per the Daily Mail report, the British PM Keir Starmer is expected to raise this matter with PM Modi during their meeting. It also noted that an investigation is under way in London regarding the alleged mix-up.

PM Modi will meet his British counterpart Starmer to sign a landmark free trade agreement between India and the UK.

At least 260 people, including 241 on board, were killed when an Air India aircraft crashed into a medical college hostel in Ahmedabad on June 12 within a minute of its take-off. One among the 242 passengers, which also included 12 pilots and crew, miraculously survived.

The 15-page preliminary report by Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AIIB), released earlier this month, has found that the fuel supply to both engines of Air India flight AI171 was cut off within a second of each other, causing confusion in the cockpit, leading to the airplane plummeting back to ground almost immediately after taking off.