Mysuru – Here is the story of a good Samaritan from the city who is the messiah of unclaimed bodies. He does the odd job of shifting unidentified and unclaimed bodies from different parts of the city to the MMC&RI mortuary and even performs the last rites of some as per their religion.

“He whose head is in heaven need not fear to put his feet into the grave.” — Matthew Henry

Ayub Ahmed, a resident of Shaktinagar in city, is the man who finds satisfaction in his odd job. The 38-year-old Ayub Ahmed, popularly known as Ayub Ahmedji, has been carrying out this job, for the   past 18 years.

Ayub took up this odd job at a young age which later became his profession. He carries unidentified bodies in a 1961-model Ambassador car that he owns. He is married and has two daughters. His wife Rooha Tabassum extends a helping hand to her husband by taking up tailoring jobs.

Ayub says that once he was going to Gundlupet when he noticed an unclaimed body lying on the road. But the body remained lying on the road even after he returned from Gundlupet and this incident deeply moved him. He then himself came forward to shift the body. But his parents and friends strongly opposed his resolve, which left him deeply disappointed.

He later went to Bengaluru and joined a private company at Maavalli, where he came across a similar situation when he had to shift a body. Not looking back, Ayub shifted the body to its assigned destination for which he was paid Rs. 10,000.   Later on, he returned to Mysuru and continued his body shifting service, which fetched him some money.

Ayub, who is carrying on with his body-shifting job, is currently engaged in shifting bodies found near Nanjangud, KRS Dam, Balamuri, T. Narasipur, Srirangapatna, etc. Ayub says that there were many instances when the persons whom he takes along to shift bodies, have taken ill after being scared to see highly mutilated, decomposed or severed bodies.

Despite being a family man and having certain responsibilities, Ayub is always ready to perform his job, irrespective of the time. He arrives in his car after he is called and soon commences his work, wasting no time.

Ayub, who is a strong believer of mankind, says that human beings can be classified only as male and female and not by religion. However, he conducts the last rites of unclaimed bodies as per religion. If the body is that of Hindu, Ayub performs the last rites at the burial ground along Jodithenginamara Road leading from Highway Circle, Christians at the Christian Cemetery at Rammanahalli and of Muslims at the Khabarsthan behind the Mysuru Central Prison.

Ayub stores a lot of white clothes at his house and is always willing to lend them to relatives of the deceased for free if they are unable to pay for it. Also, he stands in support of the poor until the last rites of their kin are performed.

When asked for the number of bodies he has shifted to the mortuary, Ayub said that he has lost count. But when insisted, he said that he has shifted more than 10,000 unidentified/ unclaimed bodies.

Ayub gets calls round-the-clock once unidentified bodies are found by the Police. If the relatives of the deceased are not identified even after three days after the discovery of the body, the Police will post pictures of the body on social networking sites. After all their efforts to trace the relatives fail, the Police will call Ayub to carry out the last rites of the person as per traditions.

Ayub says that he is carrying out his job as a service to the society so that his work will always remain in the minds of the people.

“I will continue the service until my end and I have plans to buy an ambulance for the purpose,” he says.

Ayub Ahmed can be reached on +919743756926.