Family of Indian student killed in Canada seeks govt help to travel to Toronto, fears case may be hushed up

Ghaziabad: The distraught family members of the Indian student who was shot dead at a subway station entrance in Canada on Saturday urged the government to help arrange visas for them to travel to Toronto and ensure that the killer is brought to justice. “I do not know what is happening… We want the truth to come out at the earliest so we can know what happened with our child and why he was shot dead,” Jitesh Vasudev, the father of 21-year-old Kartik Vasudev, said, adding the motive of the crime is not clear and the family is afraid that the matter may be hushed up authorities there to ‘‘protect’’ the city’s image. He said they had got information about the incident around 5 am (IST) on Friday and it was confirmed at around 11 pm. It has been over 48 hours but the family, which lives in Rajendra Nagar area of Ghaziabad, bordering the national capital, is yet to hear from government officials for any assistance in India as well as Canada, he said. I have not received any message or call from any authority. There was a tweet from Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar sir to which I even replied but there has been no follow-up. “From Canada, we got one email from an investigation official of my son’s case who sought our permission for sharing his pictures with the media there. We are not being informed anything, Jitesh Vasudev told PTI. Vasudev, who works in an MNC in Noida, said the Canadian official did not tell him anything more about the situation and it was only after some insistence that he was told that it would take six to eight days for the body to be repatriated to India after due procedures through the Indian consulate there. We are unaware of the investigation which is going on. They (Canadian authorities) have not asked us anything. Neither did they ask anything from Kartik’s cousin who lives in Canada. I spoke to Kartik’s work manager yesterday (Friday), the police had approached him and sought some information from him about Kartik, he said. According to his family, Kartik had moved to Canada in January this year to study marketing management at the Seneca College in Toronto and was working part-time at a restaurant. The local Canadian police said he was shot dead by an unidentified man at the entrance of a subway station in Toronto while he was on his way to work and was taken to a hospital but succumbed to the injuries. We urge the Indian government to help us with the visa for the family to travel immediately to Canada so that we can see what investigation is underway there. “The body will come here but they may try to suppress the case, we do not want that. The body should be brought back soon and the third demand is that the culprit should be arrested at the earliest, Kartik’s father said here. The Indian government should put some pressure on the Canadian government so that justice is done in the case and the culprit is arrested. We want to know the motive of the killing, he told PTI. Canadian police said the suspect in the shooting is a Black male standing five-foot-six to five-foot-seven inches tall with a medium build. He was last seen carrying a handgun walking south on Glen Road toward Howard Street, according to a local news channel. There was no word if the police suspect it to be a hate crime. Citing some initial media reports from Canada, Vasudev claimed a perspective was being created that Kartik was killed due to a personal problem with the shooter in order to prevent damage to the image of Toronto city. We have been demanding footage of the incident since starting so that the truth can come out. We want the truth to come out at the earliest so we can know what happened with our child and why he was shot dead, Kartik’s father said. His mother Pooja Vasudev said Kartik never had a problem with anyone nor did he talk of facing any trouble in Canada. He was a sweet child, never raised his voice. His manager at work also appreciated him, she said as her younger son Parth consoled her. I want justice for my son. What has happened with my child should not happen with anyone else. People go there with hopes and dreams but look at what has happened. It’s supposed to be such a safe city, she said. Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.