Thiruvananthapuram: The mortal remains of Malayali engineer Nambi Rajesh, who died in Muscat on May 13, was brought home on Thursday. Rajesh's relatives had protested in front of the Air India SATS Airport Services Pvt Limited office at Enjakkal with his body before taking his remains home. The protest was led by his father-in-law. The 40-year-old breathed his last without the chance to see his beloved wife one last time after the Air India Express cabin crew strike on May 6 disrupted his wife's journey. Rajesh's body was brought to the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport from Muscat on Thursday morning.
The relatives kept the body in front of the steps of the building housing the AISATS office and silently stood around it. The father-in-law sat outside the main doors of the AISATS office and said he would not budge from there until Air India Express took a decision with regard to what happened. "Let the last rites and rituals be held, but I will not leave here till they make a decision. This should not happen to anyone else in the future. They have to take care of my grandkids and my daughter. They need to compensate us for the loss. Till they take a decision on that, I will not go from here," he said. He said that those working at the AISATS office were claiming that they have nothing to do with AI Express. He questioned, "But why is Air India written in big letters on the board here?" He also claimed that the airline has not even refunded the cancelled ticket amount yet. "But refunds are not our main concern," he added. Subsequently, AI Express officials arrived there and held a discussion with the family members, including the woman's father, in the presence of police. After the discussions, the protest was called off, and the body was taken home for the final rites.
Nambi Rajesh, a native of Karamana, was hospitalised on May 5 after collapsing at his workplace in Muscat. His wife Amritha C booked a ticket to Muscat on an Air India Express flight for the next day. She arrived at the airport in the morning, only to discover that the airline had cancelled services due to the cabin crew protest.
Despite her efforts to persuade the airline officials, her pleas and tears fell on deaf ears. Instead, they sent her back home with a false promise of providing a ticket the next day. Amritha then inquired about the possibility of securing a ticket for the following day, but her efforts were in vain. Ultimately, she had to cancel her trip.
Rajesh passed away at the hospital on Monday morning. The news plunged Amritha and her family into profound sorrow, knowing that they couldn't see him one last time. Amritha is a nursing student, while Rajesh worked as an IT manager in the Middle East. The couple has two children, Anika (UKG) and Nambi Shailesh (LKG), both students at Kallattumukk Oxford School.
Last week, hundreds of flights were cancelled due to a strike by cabin crew members protesting against the Tata-owned airline's alleged mismanagement. As the strike has now been called off, the airline is anticipated to resume normal operations from Tuesday (May 14).
