Even in his wildest dreams K. Ram Mohan did not imagine that the phone call from his son Sharath on Friday morning would be the last.
An hour after he spoke to his father here in Hyderabad, Mr. Sharath was shot dead by an unknown robber in a restaurant in Kansas city of Missouri in the U.S., where he had taken a part-time job. Mr. Sharath, who moved to Kansas City in January, was pursuing his master’s in computer science from the University of Missouri.
A few days ago, the victim informed his father that he got a part-time job at a restaurant owned by a Pakistan national and said the owner was a gentleman. “Recently, he finished his first semester and started working at a restaurant till the end of his academic holidays,” said Mr. Sharath’s uncle Koppu Prasad, adding that the latter worked on the University campus after college hours. Mr. Sharath had promised his parents and family members that he would visit India during Christmas vacations this year.
‘Hard to believe’
Speaking to The Hindu here on Sunday, Mr. Prasad said they got to know about the incident on Saturday morning and everyone was in deep shock and having a hard time to believe the news.
“We are unable to believe that he is no more. Sharath was a meritorious student and relatives always sought his advice on matters of career planning,” he said.
Mr. Ram Mohan, who works with the BSNL in Hyderabad, said he was averse to sending his son to the U.S., but relented. “He was happy working here. He told about his U.S. plans only after getting the visa in December last year,” said Mr Ram Mohan who was inconsolable.
He requested the Indian Consulate in Chicago and the U.S. Government to repatriate his son’s body at the earliest. Earlier, Mr. Prasad said that around 9.30 p.m. on Saturday they got official confirmation that Mr. Sharath was shot and succumbed to his injuries.
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