THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, 5 April 2008 — A Kerala expatriate facing death in Kuwait appears to have escaped the noose as the victim’s widow from an Andhra Pradesh village pardoned him recently after accepting Rs1.5 million as blood money.
The case is now under consideration in a Kuwaiti court.
Rema Devi, wife of deceased Suresh Ambati, signed the papers to be presented to a Kuwaiti court to pardon Simil, 26, who had killed Suresh during a scuffle after a cricket match between expatriate workers.
According to Kuwaiti law, a victim has a right to retribution and only the immediate kin of the deceased can pardon the assailant.
Simil, who belongs to a poor family of anglers, has been working as a janitor in a Kuwaiti resort. In November last year, he stabbed his friend Ambati, 31, and the sharp knife sliced through his neck. He died in a few minutes and Simil immediately surrendered to the Kuwaiti police.
As the news reached here, Leader of Opposition Oommen Chandy contacted Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy who convinced Ambati’s family members to take the money and spare Simil’s life.
Ambati’s family agreed to take the money and end the case. Chandy helped in raising Rs1 million from his friends in Kuwait and back home while Reddy himself chipped in Rs500000 from his Relief Fund.
Simil had gone to Kuwait after mortgaging his house. Ambati also hailed from a poor family and his widow now works in sunflower fields to feed her two children.
