Karnataka home minister urges Canada to take action after Bengaluru-born techie killed in Toronto shooting

The shooting of Chandan Kumar, a Bengaluru-born project director in Canada, has ignited calls for justice from Indian officials.

The killing of Bengaluru-born tech professional Chandan Kumar in Canada has sparked outrage back home, with Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara urging Canadian authorities to act decisively against those responsible for the shooting.

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said the motive behind this targeted attack is not clear yet. (PTI)

Kumar, 37, was gunned down in Toronto two days ago in what officials believe was a targeted attack. Originally from Thyamagondlu village near Nelamangala on the outskirts of Bengaluru, he was the only son of Nanda Kumar, a retired schoolteacher, reported news agency PTI.

Reacting to the incident, Parameshwara said he was deeply shaken by the news and called on the Canadian government to ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice. “He was a talented person who went there and worked as a project director. Strict action should be taken in accordance with the existing laws in Canada. I learnt that the investigation has begun,” the minister told reporters, as per the report.

Authorities are still unclear about why Kumar was targeted, with no confirmed motive emerging so far. According to Parameshwara, the lack of clarity has only added to the anguish of the family.

Back in Karnataka, Kumar’s parents are grappling with unimaginable loss. They have appealed to both the Centre and the state government for urgent help in bringing their son’s body back to India. Speaking to the minister, the grieving parents said their lives had lost all meaning after losing their only child.

“Please help us bring the body back at the earliest,” Kumar’s mother pleaded, according to the report.

Parameshwara assured the family that the state government had already taken up the matter with the Indian Embassy in Canada and that efforts were underway to speed up the process.

What Canadian police have revealed so far

Canadian authorities have identified Chandan Kumar as the third homicide victim in Toronto this year, with the shooting taking place at around 3:30 pm on Saturday in the parking lot of the Woodbine Shopping Center, HT earlier reported. Police said officers found him with multiple gunshot wounds and rushed him to hospital, where he later died.

Nandakumar, a Brampton resident, was well known among Indo-Canadians, worked with LTI Mindtree in Canada, had previously been employed with Cognizant, studied engineering in Bengaluru, and was active in cultural organisations, including the Kannada Sangha Toronto and the World Arya Vysya Mahasabha - Canada, the report stated.

(With PTI inputs)