Durgapur, Nov. 20: The amputated leg of a man was found in a dead woman’s bundle of belongings after the CMRI Hospital released the body to her family last evening.

The hospital has apologised in writing and taken the leg back.

Lakshmi Paul of Durgapur, 28, had died of jaundice on November 14 after being admitted to the intensive cardiac care unit (ICCU) of the Calcutta Medical Research Institute on August 23.

Her father, a spice trader in Durgapur, and her husband, who works in a jewellery shop, were refused custody of the body since they could not pay the entire bill of Rs 9 lakh.

Last evening, the family paid the outstanding Rs 3.33 lakh and received the body from the morgue.

“I arranged for the money by selling my land and sent my brother and son-in-law to bring the body yesterday,” said Lakshmi’s father, Kalidas Sikdar.

Along with the body, hospital workers handed over two plastic bags, saying they contained Lakshmi’s clothes.

“We refused to accept the bags since they were of no use to us any more but the workers dumped them on the vehicle we had hired,” said Gopal, Lakshmi’s husband. The body reached Durgapur around 8pm.

When Gopal opened one of the bags, he found it contained some clothes as well as something wrapped in a piece of cloth. It was a human leg.

“I was stunned. How could an amputated leg get into the bundle?” he said.

Gopal called the police, who contacted the hospital. “The hospital sent three employees who apologised and took the leg back with them around 2.30am today,” said Mathura Sikdar, Lakshmi’s uncle.

CMRI authorities said the amputated leg was that of a road accident victim, Tarashankar Das, who underwent surgery a few days ago and was recovering.

“The leg was amputated a few days ago. Any amputated body part can be disposed of only after a police clearance,” said Rupak Barua, chief operating officer at the CMRI.

The clearance was yet to come and so the leg had been kept in the mortuary.

“It was kept near Lakshmi’s body. When the body was released, the sweeper thought the bundle was part of her belongings and handed it over too.”

Lakshmi’s family has not lodged a police complaint. “What is the use…. I have lost my wife. I hope the hospital will not repeat this with anybody else,” Gopal said.

The police did not register a case on their own since the hospital had apologised in writing. “The hospital has accepted its mistake, so we didn’t find it necessary to register a case,” said Arup Sarkar, the officer in charge of New Township police station.