Belagavi: In an unusual turn of events, 62-year-old Ganapati Kakatkar from Savgaon approached Belagavi Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Roshan on Monday with an extraordinary plea — to prove he was alive. Walking with his own death certificate, Ganapati sought help to rectify a clerical error that had upended his life.
The error, introduced during a land succession process, resulted in Ganapati being declared ‘dead’ in official records, as per The Indian Express report. This not only locked his Aadhaar card but also stripped him of access to his bank account and vital government benefits, plunging him into a bureaucratic nightmare.

A Mistake That Changed Everything

Ganapati’s ordeal began two years ago when he and his brothers initiated proceedings to transfer six acres and 23 guntas of land left behind by their grandfather, Masanu Shattu Kakatkar, who passed away in 1976. The land had remained unclaimed for decades, despite being divided among Masanu’s three sons before his death.
As Masanu’s descendants, Ganapati and his seven brothers sought to claim their inheritance but faced delays due to the lack of a death certificate for their grandfather. The local court intervened and ordered the certificate to be issued, but the process took a wrong turn.
At the Hindalga revenue inspector’s office, a computer operator mistakenly entered Ganapati’s Aadhaar number in place of his grandfather’s, effectively declaring him ‘dead.’ Months later, Ganapati realised the impact of this error when his Aadhaar card was locked, and his name was removed from the family ration card.
The error came to light on August 3, 2023, but Ganapati’s repeated visits to local offices, including the tahsildar’s, yielded no results. Sharing his frustration, Ganapati explained, “My Aadhaar number had been wrongly entered instead of my grandfather’s. Despite telling them, the officials did not act.”
With no resolution in sight, Ganapati, accompanied by his family and an advocate, turned to Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Roshan. Moved by Ganapati’s plight, Roshan assured him that the matter would be resolved and directed the assistant commissioner to take immediate action.