Investigation Ends: Jinu Raj's Body Repatriated to India from Sharjah, Avoiding Public Cremation

SHARJAH: The body of Jinu Raj (42), a native of Mallappuzha, Pathanamthitta, which was slated for public cremation in Sharjah due to a lack of claimants, has been successfully repatriated to his hometown. Jinu had collapsed due to a sudden illness on July 14, 2025, and passed away despite being rushed to Kuwait Hospital in Sharjah.

The tragic part of the story is that Jinu's death was unknown to his relatives and friends for nearly three months. His family in India was under the serious misconception that Jinu was detained in a Sharjah jail due to some traffic violations. Following this, his sister, Jiji, conducted an intense search, and when she failed to get any information, she approached Adv. Sinil Mundappally, Senior Standing Counsel at the High Court and President of the SNDP Yogam Pandal Union, for assistance.

Adv. Sinil Mundappally contacted Prasad Sreedharan, Vice Chairman of the SNDP Yogam UAE Central Committee, who then entrusted the case to CEO of Yab Legal Services Salam Pappinissery. Salam Pappinissery's intervention proved to be the turning point: he discovered that Jinu was not in any UAE jail but that his body was at the Sharjah Police Mortuary, awaiting a claimant.

Legal action was then taken to obtain a stay on the decision to bury the body in the UAE, and all legal hurdles for repatriation were cleared. Prasad Sreedharan located Jinu’s relative, Wilson, and along with representatives from Yab Legal Services and SNDP Yogam activists, they completed the necessary procedures.

The body was flown from Sharjah to Thiruvananthapuram on an Air Arabia flight last night (Tuesday). Jinu, whose mother had passed away earlier, was mainly dependent on his father and sister Jiji. Jiji had last contacted him on July 6, 2025.

It was revealed that Jinu had overstayed his visa, which expired in 2023, and had been remaining in Sharjah on a visit visa. He was reportedly in a state of distress after losing his job and subsequently being defrauded out of lakhs of rupees by Malayali agents in the UAE, who had promised to take him to Russia and other countries. A grim end to a tough run.