Mysuru: The body of a 22-year-old man who died in Malayasia seven months ago has finally reachced home in Periyapatna town in Mysuru district.
The long delay was due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which put a stop to intnernational aviation.
Sumanth V was the eldest son on Shobha, a tailor, and Venktesh, a driver, of Periyapatna. He died in December 2019.
"Sumanth found a job on a ship at Sheeba in Malaysia less than a year ago. On 14 December 2019, he went missing. On 18 December he was found dead, allegedly due to drowning. His mother was asked by the Malaysian embassy to send her DNA report to confirm the identity of the body. After all the formalities, Sumanth's body was supposed to arrive back in India, but the process got delayed due to Covid 19 crisis. Though the Malaysian embassy proposed to finish the cremation there itself, his mother Shobha was persistent to send her son's body," Pavan Kumar told Deccan Chronicle.
Sumanth's body arrived at the Thiruchinapalli airport at 12 midnight and taken to his home in Rudrappa layout in Periyapatna at 9 am on Tuesday. Once his mother confirmed it was her son, the body was cremated at 10 am at Periyapatna on Tuesday.
"Being from a small town, as a few astrologers and temple priests had told Sumanth's mother that her son was still alive, his mother Shobha wanted the body to be brought home, to confirm if it was her son. After all our efforts with the support of Mysuru Kodagu MP Pratap Simha, the body was preserved in cold storage after embalming at a local government hospital at Sheeba in Malaysia. The body was at last supposed to arrive at Bengaluru international airport on 3 July. But further due to cancellation of flight, the body was supposed to arrive at Bengaluru airport by 15 June. So fearing further crisis due to covid 19, we insisted the Malaysian embassy to send the body to the nearest airport in India and we would collect the body from there," Pavan said.
At last the body was transported 6500 kms to Malaysian airport and sent in a flight from there, to Thiruchinapally on 6 July. While the body arrived at 9am on 6 July, it was handed over to family members after the formalities at 12am on 7 July.
Pavan Kumar and his family had taken Ambulance from Periyapatna with the financial support of local leaders and letters from local police and municipality to get necessary clearances (at check posts and airport), to Thiruchinapally airport. And they brought the body at 9am on Tusday.
Once the victim's mother confirmed the identity, the body was cremated within an hour's time on Tuesday.
"While it is being said that it is a suspicious unnatural death, the exact reason for the death is still not known. Though his mother is yet to recover from the pain of losing her son, her ambiguity on her son's death and her long wait to see her son has at last ended. ," Pavan said.
