Heart-rending scenes were witnessed on Tuesday, as the mortal remains of Srinivas Kuchibhotla, the Indian techie who was shot dead in Kansas in an apparent hate crime, were consigned to flames. Family members, relatives and friends bid a tearful adieu as his last rites were performed at “Vaikuntha Mahapras-thanam” crematorium in the posh Jubilee Hills area of Hyderabad on Tuesday.
His parents Madhusudhan Rao and Parvatha Vardhini surrounded by the immediate family members were in deep shock, tears rolling down their sunken cheeks.
Earlier, body of Srinivas was flown in from Newark Jersey to his home town Hyderabad by an Air India flight on Monday night. Union External Ministry officials had made the arrangements for bringing the body back to India.
Apart from the family members, Telangana Minister P Mahinder Reddy, Member of Parliament Ch Malla Reddy Government and police officials were present at the airport to receive the body.
The house echoed with the wails of mother of Srinivas who wanted his younger son Sai Kiran and his family to stay back and not to return to the US. “I will never allow them to go back”, she said amid sobs. “I used to tell Srinivas also to come back if he feels insecure there but he used to say he was safe and secure”.
A resigned Madhusudhan, the father of Srinivas was philosophical in his reaction. “Whatever was destined to happen has happened. We only want the US Government to take care of the security of our Indians working there.”
She said the family was happy that a family member had gone to the US for a better future. “What crime he had committed,” she asked.
Srinivas died and his friend and colleague Alok Madasani was injured when a US Navy veteran Adam Purinton opened fire at them in a bar after shouting “go back from my country”. He was arrested soon after the incident, which was being seen as a hate crime.