Ranchi, March 20: Captain Rakesh Ranjan, who was carrying oil near the Strait of Hormuz amid the West Asia conflict, has died, his family said on Friday.
His family has appealed to the Centre and Jharkhand governments to help bring back the body of Captain Rakesh Ranjan.
Ranjan (43), a Ranchi native who was on board the private company-owned ship ‘ASP Avan- RPSL-MUM-172’, died of a heart attack on March 18, his family said.
The family said Ranjan’s ship had been stranded about 14 nautical miles from the Strait of Hormuz since February 28 after traffic in the region was suspended due to the West Asia conflict.
“I request Chief Minister Hemant Soren to help bring back my brother’s body at the earliest. The company should not create any hurdles in releasing his financial dues and the government should monitor the matter,” said his elder brother Umesh Singh.
“Furthermore, I urge the Central Government, the Indian Embassy in Dubai and the company to hand over my brother’s body to us at the earliest. I have written to CM Soren and Ranchi MP Sanjay Seth seeking help in bringing back the body,” Singh said.
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“My younger brother was serving as the captain of the ship. The company informed us that Ranjan lost consciousness and fell from his chair on March 18 and medical assistance was attempted. However, he was not allowed to be airlifted. He was later taken to Port Rashid in Dubai by boat where he was declared brought dead,” Singh told PTI. He said that his death was probably due to a heart attack.
However, he said the family is waiting for the post-mortem report to know the cause of Ranjan’s death.
“The body has been kept in police custody at the Port Rashid morgue,” Singh told PTI.