In Buxar District’s Devi Dehri, a grieving father gifts the cultivable land after son Shivam Kumar was killed in a tragic accident
NEW DELHI — A Hindu family in Devi Dehri village of Buxar district in Bihar has donated one bigha of land for a Muslim graveyard, ending a long-standing problem faced by local Muslims who had no place to bury their dead.
The land has been given in memory of Shivam Kumar, a young man from the village who died in a road accident in Dehradun on November 18. Family members say the decision reflects Shivam’s nature and his concern for others.
Shivam’s uncle, Brij Raj Singh, recalled the moment when the idea took shape during the family’s darkest hours. ‘My nephew’s last rites were performed at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi. At that time, my elder brother felt that when his son left this world, something good should be done in his name,’ he said.
According to the family, Devi Dehri village under Rampur panchayat in Chosa block, has around 50 Muslim families. For years, they faced difficulty during burials. An old graveyard once existed, but a school was later built on that land as it had no official papers. Since then, families were forced to take bodies nearly five kilometres away.
Brij Raj Singh said this reality weighed heavily on the family. “My brother said the Muslims of the village suffer at the time of burial. We thought the land should be donated as a memorial to our son’s life, so no one faces this trouble again,” he said.
After Shivam’s body was brought back to Bihar and the rituals were completed, the family returned to the village. On the day of the Brahma Bhoj, members of the Muslim community were invited. Discussions followed, and a committee was formed with Hindu and Muslim members to manage the graveyard.
Janardan Singh’s family then formally donated one bigha of cultivable land. “The land has been given for the graveyard. It is under cultivation right now, and the income from the crop will be used to develop the burial place. No one from my family has any right over this land now,” Brij Raj Singh said.
Shivam Kumar was travelling to his office on his motorcycle when a speeding car hit him. He died on the spot. The sudden loss left the village in shock, but many residents say the family’s decision has given meaning to the tragedy.
Alauddin, a local villager, said the donation has brought great relief. “We had no option earlier and had to take bodies far away. That was painful for poor families. Now this problem has ended,” he said. He added that the gesture showed humanity above all divisions.
Members of the Muslim community have praised the family’s step, saying it has restored dignity at a sensitive time of life and death. For them, the land is not just soil, but a sign of care and shared living, given when it mattered the most.
