Daijiworld Media Network - Dubai (SD)

Dubai, Jun 8: In an unfortunate incident, a Keralite in Dubai died in his sleep one month after his pregnant wife was flown back on the first repatriation flight during the lockdown. The deceased, Nithin Chandran (28), had supported his wife's move to approach the Supreme Court for seeking early repatriation.

The couple had hit the headlines after his wife, Athira Geetha Sreedharan (27) filed a writ petition seeking early repatriation to India for the delivery of their first baby due in the first week of July.

Nithin had stayed back after the repatriation of his wife from Dubai under Vande Bharat Mission on May 7. He was working as a mechanical engineer with a construction company in Dubai.

The cause of his death is yet to be verified, however, he is suspected to have died of a heart attack as he was under treatment for high blood pressure and a heart condition, his friends reported.

Bibin Jacob, one of his friends said, “We got to know about this from one of his friends, Praveen, who had moved into Nithin’s apartment just a couple of days as he was alone after Athira left for India.”

Even though the petition Athira filed had no desired impact, she had managed to fly from Dubai to Kozhikode under priority. Reportedly, the repatriation was possible after the consul general of India in Dubai, Vipul placed her request on a high priority, as travelling on a later date would be difficult due to advanced stage of pregnancy.

Vipul expressed his condolences to the family. “I am shocked to hear about the demise of Nithin whose wife is pregnant and was among the first one to be repatriated on Vande Bharat Mission,” he said.

The consul general acknowledged the couple's various initiatives in organizing blood donation camps and volunteering especially during the ongoing COVID-19 situation.