E-Paper
IIT Madras alumnus dies of heart attack in UAE hours after wife and son fly back to Kerala
Hariraj Sudevan died of a heart attack in Abu Dhabi hours after dropping his wife and son at the airport for their Kerala flight.
An Indian expat engineer in the UAE died of a sudden heart attack just hours after bidding farewell to his wife and son at the Abu Dhabi International Airport.
Hariraj Sudevan, 37, who hailed from Alappuzha district in Kerala, passed away in the early hours of Monday, merely hours after dropping off his wife, Dr Anu Ashok, and their 10-year-old son, Ishaan Dev Hari, as they flew back home. Speaking to Gulf News, his father-in-law, Ashokan KP, said the family was devastated. “We are all devastated and finding it difficult to accept the reality that he is no more,” he said.
He also said his daughter and grandson had spent 10 days with Hariraj before they returned home on Sunday evening. Hariraj had planned to visit them later this month to attend his son’s birthday on October 27.
(Also Read: Woman causes chaos on flight, blocks aisle for daughter to deboard first: ‘I’m not getting off without her’)
Who was Hariraj Sudevan?
Hariraj, who had been working in the UAE for 12 years, was employed as a senior offshore construction engineer in Abu Dhabi. Before that, he worked for 11 years in Dubai as a subsea pipeline installation engineer.
His close friend Digin Thomas, who accompanied his remains to Kerala for the funeral, said the tragedy struck unexpectedly. The 37-year-old had dropped his wife and son off at the airport and later came to our home to celebrate Thomas’ daughter’s birthday, the friend said.
“So, after returning from the airport, he came to my apartment, and we spent some nice time together. We had a cake cutting ceremony, and he gifted my daughter and played with my children. All my children are very close to him," he said.
“It was around 11:40pm that he felt uneasy, and then Sujith (Hariraj’s roommate) called me and another friend from their building, and the ambulance also," Thomas recalled. “He complained of breathing difficulties and was sweating. Paramedics performed CPR and rushed him to the hospital, but doctors couldn’t save him,” he said.
Hariraj was diabetic but managed it through diet and yoga. He had recently mentioned mild ECG irregularities during a routine offshore check-up, but was cleared after additional tests.
According to Gulf News, Hariraj was a brilliant student who completed his B.Tech from CUSAT and M.Tech from IIT Madras. “He will always be remembered for his smile and kind nature,” Thomas said, adding, “It’s heartbreaking to lose someone so genuine and full of life.”
Hariraj’s funeral was held on Tuesday in his hometown in Alappuzha.
