Centre promises help to family of Kerala man who died in Sudan

The Union government on Sunday said that all help will be provided to the family of the Indian national who died of bullet injuries in the violence-hit Sudanese capital city of Khartoum.

Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said the family of Albert Augestine, who hailed from Kannur district of Kerala, will be provided all necessary help and that steps are on to bring his body back to the country.

The Minister also spoke to the victim's father, a government statement said.

Augestine's wife and daughter who were with him in Sudan are safe, the Minister said and added that the Indian Embassy in Sudan has been instructed to coordinate on further steps.

Augestine, suffered bullet injuries while speaking to his son who is in Canada, his relatives here in Kerala told TV channels. He was inside his house when the tragic incident occurred.

Augestine was working in a Dal Group Company in Sudan.

Meanwhile, KPCC chief K Sudhakaran wrote to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar seeking his urgent intervention to expedite the repatriation of Augestine's remains to India.

Explosions and clashes were reported in various areas in Khartoum in the backdrop of escalating tension between a paramilitary force and Sudan's Army.

According to the official data, the number of Indians in Sudan is around 4,000, including 1,200 who have settled down in the country decades ago.

Sudan's military captured power in a coup in October 2021 and it has been running the country through a sovereign council since then.

There has been a dispute between the Army and the paramilitary over a proposed timeline for handing over power to a civilian government.