Following the death of Marxist leader and General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Sitaram Yechury, the internet has been rife with rumours claiming he was Christian by faith. The basis of the claim was that during his funeral, Yechury's body was seen stored in a wooden box, which was equated to a casket or a coffin used in Christian funerals.
BOOM found this claim to be false; Yechury had mentioned on several occasions that he was an atheist, and thus did not follow any religion. Furthermore, a press release from AIIMS, New Delhi confirm that his body was donated to the hospital, due to which it was embalmed and placed in a box. Additionally, footage of his funeral confirm that no religious ceremony or last rites were performed.
Yechury died at the age of 72 on September 12, 2024 at AIIMS Delhi, after suffering from an acute respiratory infection.
As images and videos from his funeral went viral, several right-leaning social media users highlighted that Yechury was not cremated according to Hindu customs, and that his body was placed in a coffin. Based on this, these users deduced that Yechury was Christian.
Click here and here to view the above X posts.
Similar claims were also made on Facebook, which can be viewed here and here.
Fact Check
BOOM viewed the images posted by the accounts making the viral claim, and found that they were taken at Yechury's alma mater Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. Yechury's body was brought to JNU for its students to pay homage to the political leader who started his political career in the university.
We viewed several videos and images from JNU, which showed students and teachers gathering around the coffin carrying Yechury's body, to pay their final respects. None of these images or videos, including the ones posted by the users making the viral claim, gave any indication of a Christian funeral being performed.
Yechury's Religious Beliefs
While Yechury was born in Chennai to a Telugu-speaking Brahmin family, he has expressed on numerous occasions that he was an atheist, and did not follow any religious beliefs.
In an X post (formerly tweet) dated April 22, 2017, Yechury clearly mentions that he is an atheist. He mentions to Hindustan Times in an interview that he has been an atheist since his twenties.
BOOM also reached out to Sujan Chakraborty, a member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) who corroborated the same. "He was born into a Hindu family but he was an atheist," Chakraborty told BOOM.
Why Was Yechury’s Body Placed in a Coffin?
Going by the viral X posts, the only basis for the claim of Yechury being a Christian is that he was placed in a coffin, instead of being cremated, following Hindu last rites.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan stated that Yechury's body was "handed over to AIIMS Delhi for medical study" after his friends, family and admirers bid him farewell.
An article by The Hindu also confirmed that his body embalmed after his death and placed in a coffin, to be later donated to AIIMS Delhi for research. The article also confirms that no final rites, or religious ceremony of any kind, were performed during his funeral.