Counting months and bribes to a death certificate

Yes, there is a triple-engine sarkar in Gurugram. It came to power with a promise of ‘na khaunga na khane doonga’

She approached a person who had contact in the Common Services Centre, and he assured her he would get it, but Rs 4,000 would have to be paid to get it from the MCG. With no choice, the amount was paid, and finally it was received

Written by: Usha Rai

4 min readOct 31, 2026 07:09 AM IST First published on: Oct 31, 2026 at 07:09 AM IST

Losing an 80 odd-year-old sibling living with you is heartbreaking enough, but getting her death certificate was even more traumatic. Though married twice, she had no husband or children, so getting her death certificate fell on her octogenarian sibling. After informing family and friends and completing the rituals, her priority was to get the death certificate. Her bank accounts had to be closed, and the government informed her because she had spent many years working as a paediatrician in one of Delhi’s better-known hospitals.

If a person dies in a hospital, the death certificate is given by the hospital, but if a person dies at home, the death certificate is given by the Municipal Corporation. Since the siblings were in Gurugram, the death certificate had to be given by the department of births and deaths certification under the Health Department of the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG). A relative, who had got the death certificate for his brother who died at the height of the COVID pandemic, offered to get it. After a week or so, he called to say that the neighbour who had got the death certificate for his brother was unable to get it because his contact in the MCG had been transferred. He then decided to get it himself since he had got his mother’s death certificate from the MCG in 2015.

He went to the MCG office and found the department had shifted to another building in Gurugram. The man sitting at the counter said that since two months had lapsed since her death, it would cost him Rs 25,000. It seemed too much money to pay for a death certificate, the mandatory right of the deceased’s relative. So he sought the assistance of a lawyer who said it would be done on payment of Rs 5,000. Half the amount was paid as an advance. After a month, the lawyer expressed his inability to get it. So, three months after her death, the responsibility was back on the shoulders of the octogenarian. A member of the RWA of her locality offered to help out since he had got his father’s death certificate recently. He even checked with the Common Services Centre in Gurugram and was told that because of the delayed application, it would cost Rs 12,000.

The octogenarian then approached the area’s municipal councillor, and he put her in touch with his assistant, who said he would do the needful and gave forms to fill up. After two or three follow-ups, the old lady was too embarrassed to call back. Quite by chance, she shared her ordeal with a driver whom she often hired, and he said he knew the man who dealt with death certificates and would get it for her. However, that man had left the government, but he put the driver in touch with his replacement. The relevant papers, like the doctor’s death certificate, the certificate from the crematorium, and the Aadhaar card, were deposited along with the application. He demanded Rs 12,000. Realising that to get the certificate she could not escape the bribe, she paid Rs 6,000 as an advance and agreed to pay the rest on getting the death certificate.

Mid-July, seven months after the death, there was an acknowledgement from the MCG that it was being processed. The website showed payment of Rs 30 for processing it and indicated the due date for getting it as August 31. But it still did not reach, and the man who had taken Rs 6,000 as an advance said he was busy with the SIR and the lady had to be patient. Then she approached a person who had contact in the Common Services Centre, and he assured her he would get it, but Rs 4,000 would have to be paid to get it from the MCG. With no choice, the amount was paid, and finally it was received in the latter half of September, nine months after her death.

Yes, there is a triple-engine sarkar in Gurugram. It came to power with a promise of “na khaunga na khane doonga”.