Himashri Boro’s body being brought by road after flight promise, AASU slams Assam government

The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) on October 9 criticised the Assam government over its decision to transport the body of 20-year-old Himashri Boro by ambulance from Andhra Pradesh, alleging that the government had failed to honour its promise to bring her remains home by flight.

AASU president Utpal Sharma, who visited the bereaved family along with a delegation of the students’ body, described the development as “utterly shameful” and said the government should have ensured that the deceased student was brought home with dignity.

“The government had promised the family that her body would be carried through flight. At the end, after the post-mortem was completed, the family was informed that the body had started decomposing and no flight carrier was allowing it to be transported by air,” Sharma said.

He alleged that the family had been left distressed by the decision to transport the body by road, a journey that he said could take nearly two days.

“The family have expressed anguish and it is our anguish as well that minimum respect should have been shown on the part of the government to the body of Himashri,” the AASU president said.

Sharma also questioned the delay in completing the post-mortem, alleging that it had further complicated arrangements to bring the body home. He said the government had made the assurance to the family and the local MLA that the remains would be transported by flight or air ambulance.

The AASU president's remarks came amid growing concern over the circumstances surrounding Boro’s death. The 20-year-old student of B Borooah College in Guwahati, who hailed from Kamrup district, had travelled to Visakhapatnam as part of a dance troupe.

She boarded the Dibrugarh Vivek Express on October 5 while returning to Guwahati. According to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Boro’s family received a distress message from her on October 6 in which she expressed fear over the presence of several men around her. She subsequently went missing, and her body was later recovered from a forested area near Malayapuram in Andhra Pradesh’s Srikakulam district.

Sharma said the incident had raised serious questions about women's safety during train journeys and the response of railway authorities to distress calls.

He alleged that Boro had remained in contact with a friend until around 2 am to 2.30 am and that railway authorities received a distress call at around 3 am. He further claimed that the authorities failed to act promptly and that her luggage was not located until the train reached Guwahati.

The AASU president demanded a thorough and time-bound investigation into Boro’s death and exemplary punishment for those found responsible.

He also claimed that more than 20 passengers from Assam had either gone missing or been killed during train journeys over the past five years, urging the authorities to address what he described as a serious security concern.

The Assam government has separately sought a thorough investigation into Boro’s death. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has written to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, seeking a time-bound inquiry. A senior Assam Police officer has also been deputed to Andhra Pradesh to coordinate with local law enforcement agencies.

The allegations raised by AASU regarding the handling of the distress call, the post-mortem delay and the arrangements for transporting the body could not be independently verified at the time of writing.