The Kerala High Court on Wednesday dismissed the appeal filed by Asha Lawrence objecting to giving her father and veteran CPI-M leader M M Lawrence’s body to Ernakulam Medical College.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice S Manu on Wednesday upheld a single bench’s decision to allow the donation of late CPI-M leader MM Lawrence’s body to the Ernakulam Medical College and dismissed the appeal filed by Asha Lawrence, the daughter of MM Lawrence challenging the single bench order.
In her appeal, Asha Lawrence had argued that the Single Bench had wrongly interpreted Section 4A of the Kerala Anatomy Act. She submitted that when there was a dispute on the donation of the body, the authorities could not have accepted the body. She also argued that as per the provision, the request should have been made before the authority.
Soon after the death of Lawerence on September 21, Asha Lawrence approached the Kerala High Court to prevent handing over her father’s body to Ernakulam Medical College by her siblings and CPI-M. She argued that her father never expressed any interest to donate his body to the medical college. She urged that the body ought to be buried according to the Christian rites.
. The High Court on September 23 disposed of her plea by directing the Principal of the Medical College to assess her objections before making a final decision. Subsequently, the Principal formed an advisory committee to review the matter.
The committee relied on a body donation consent form signed by MM Lawrence and witnessed by two individuals to conclude that this consent was valid under Section 4(1) of the Kerala Anatomy Act, granting legal possession of the body to Lawrence’s son, ML Sajeevan, who did not oppose the donation.
Following this, Asha moved another petition , challenging the authority of the Principal to constitute the advisory committee, claiming that it violated the principles of natural justice. Asha, in her petition, said that her father had followed all Christian rituals during his lifetime and his burial must also be as per the Christian rites and rituals. It was stated that there was no unequivocal request made by her father to donate his body for medical purposes.
It was stated that her objections were not considered by the Principal and he illegally constituted a committee to conduct the hearing without obtaining permission from the court. She argued that her sister Sujatha had formally withdrawn her consent for the body donation, which was not taken into account. On October 23, the Single Judge dismissed her petition observing that donation of body of MM Lawrence for medical research was lawful and in compliance with the Kerala Anatomy Act
The order of the single bench was based on the statements made by Lawrence to his son ML Sajeev in the presence of two witnesses that the body should be handed over for medical research .Asha has challenged the single bench order before the division bench of the High Court.
Veteran CPI-M leader and former central committee member of the Left party, MM Lawrence passed away at a private hospital in Kochi on Saturday at the age of 95.
One of the first generation leaders of the undivided Communist Party of India (CPI), Lawrence was an activist of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) and later the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU). As a young trade unionist he played a key role in organising port and factory workers in Kochi.
A former convenor of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in the state, Lawrence served as a Member of the Lok Sabha representing Idukki constituency from 1980 to 1984.