Wanted him to return after Trump won: Srinivas' dad

Afraid that Donald Trump’s presidency would be marked by racist attacks, the father of the techie who was shot dead by a racist American army veteran wanted him to return home.

0“We had been asking him to return after Trump became President, but he was not afraid,” Madhusudhana Rao, father of Kuchibhotla Srinivas who was shot in Olathe, Kansas on Friday, told reporters.

“I only pray that no other Indian parent has this experience,” Rao said. The Kuchibhotla family hails from Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh, but are settled in Hyderabad.

Meanwhile, efforts are on to bring Srinivas’ body back to his home in Bachupalli by Monday night, helped by three online crowdfunding initiatives and the Telugu Association of North America’s (TANA) emergency team which is working to get all clearances despite two-day weekend in the US.

‘Go Fund Me Srinivas’, set up by the slain techie’s ex-colleague Kavipriya Muthuramalingam from Irvin, California, has collected $5,10,700 so far against the target of $1,50,000. The fund would go towards the family recovery support.

The Madasani /Kuchibhotla Relief Fund set up by a Kansas man Brian Eric Ford has raised $74,026 against a goal of $75,000, while Alok Madasani medical relief fund created by Rohan Reddy has raised $1,725 against the target of $75,000 in less than 24 hours.

Telangana Information Technology Minister K T Rama Rao, who visited Srinivas’s parents here on Saturday said the  government has received information from MEA that Srinivas’ body would arrive here on February 27 at 8.45 pm. DH News Service