Family of Dubai Metro suicide man waiting for body to be released

Before he took his own life, Harish Pujari Mahabla, 36, told his uncle that his earnings should be sent to his mother.

DUBAI // Relatives of a man who killed himself by jumping in front of a Dubai Metro train are waiting for authorities to release his body.

Harish Pujari Mahabla, 36, an Indian expatriate who worked as a cashier and delivery boy at Ginny's Plus Trading in Tecom, was found dead on the morning of December 3 at the Jumeirah Lakes Towers station.

"We have got police clearance but are waiting for his visa cancellation," said Nityanand Pujari, an uncle. "Once we get the body, we will do the cremation in Dubai. His mother and sister are very upset. Seeing the damaged body will only upset them more."

Mr Mahabla reportedly jumped over a low barrier on to the tracks. His was the first death on the Dubai Metro.

Recalling the day he last spoke to his nephew, Mr Pujari said: "He called me on December 2 and said his earnings should be sent to his mother. When I asked him what the problem was, he said it was nothing and hung up. I tried ringing him back but his phone was switched off. He was a bit drunk and think had lost his mental balance.

"I went to meet him in his accommodation in Discovery Gardens but since he had shifted rooms recently, I didn't know where he was staying." Later that night, Mr Pujari received a call from his nephew's friends asking about his whereabouts. "We looked for him everywhere and he did not come home that night. Police later said they had found a match between his fingerprints and the person who died in front of the metro."

Ginny Sahni, chief executive of the Ginny group, said his company would submit the necessary documents to the Indian Embassy today, and that it would help Mr Mahabla's family with the cremation procedures.

Mr Mahabla had worked with the company's convenience store for two years.