Family of Indian student who died in London seeks govt's help to bring back body; had taken loan for his education

The parents of a 25-year-old Indian student in England who was found dead in his apartment have appealed to the Central and Telangana state governments to help bring their son's body back to India.

Srinath Reddy, 25, from Talamadla village in Telangana, was found dead in his room on June 23. Reddy had been living in England for the past year to pursue a master's degree, for which his family took out an education loan and borrowed additional money from relatives to support his dream.

Family seeks help

Reddy's father, Madhusudan Reddy, said his son had called home on the night before his death and that their conversation was completely normal, with "nothing seeming wrong".

The same night, Reddy attended a birthday party with friends. The following morning, he was found unresponsive. He was pursuing the second year of his MS at Leicester University.

The family has appealed to both the Indian government and the Telangana state government to help expedite the repatriation of his son's body so they can perform his last rites.

Last call home

"We are from Talamadla village in Rajampet mandal. My son went to England for higher studies 14 months ago. He used to speak to us every day on the phone. On the night before his death, he spoke to us at 9 pm. We don't know how he died. We are trying to understand the reason behind his death, and we request the Indian and Telangana state governments to help us find out what caused his death," Madhusudan Reddy said.

"We learned about his death on Wednesday through our relatives. Our relatives also went to the hospital to enquire about his death, but the police stopped them there. We don't suspect anyone, but we need to know the reason for his death," he added.

"We have received information that on the night of June 22, he attended a birthday function and returned home. He went to sleep while one of his roommates went out. When the roommate returned the next morning, he found him unresponsive and informed his friends, who then informed our relatives. We are not sure whether it was murder or suicide," he said.

Appeal for repatriation

A GoFundMe campaign has been launched by Srinath's family in the UK to help cover the cost of repatriating his mortal remains to India.

In the appeal, the family described Srinath as a young man who carried not only his own dreams but also the aspirations of his entire family.

"His parents worked tirelessly to provide him with the best possible education and opportunities," the campaign page said. "To support his studies abroad, his family took out an education loan and borrowed money from relatives, believing in his potential and future success."

Already burdened by loans and debts incurred to fund his education, the family is now struggling to meet the additional costs of bringing him back to India.

Crowdfunding efforts are underway to help ease the family's financial burden.