#UPDATE: As per the latest update by Deg Tegh Fateh Sikh Society Inc., the total amount of $16825 NZD (INR 7,96,678.89) was deposited to Hardeep Singh's father Jogga Singh's HDFC account number 50100083136496 on Thursday, January 19.
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The year gone by ended on a devastating note for the family of Hardeep Singh Deol. The 25-year-old boy was stabbed on Christmas day at a property on Cashmere Road, Christchurch and died a day later on December 26, 2016.
A 22-year-old woman, who has been granted name suppression, has been charged with the murder of the boy and appeared in court on December 27. One of the friends, Indian Weekender spoke to, had earlier confirmed that the woman, who was in a relationship with Mr Deol, had accepted hurting him, the motive of which is still unknown.
The woman is now in police custody and will next appear in High Court on February 3.
Mr Doel hailed from the Rania town of Sirsa district in Haryana, India and came to New Zealand to study hotel management in 2014 after completing his B Tech from a private college in Malout, India.
He was on a work visa and had started working as a pivot builder at Precise Water Services in Christchurch in early November.
Mr Deol’s boss was shocked at the incident and said that he was a “gentle soul”.
"This is just a horrific bolt out of the blue.
"Unfortunately, we don't know anything about his personal life, but all we saw was a guy who was very upbeat, kind, and struck us as a good, honest bloke and came across as a gentle soul," Managing Director of Precise Water Services Mike Barnett was quoted as saying by Stuff.co.nz.
Mr Deol’s family in India was unaware of his relation with the woman. However, his friend in Christchurch said that he knew the girl for past 15–20 days. He had told his family that he has Christmas vacation for 15 days starting December 25, the day he was stabbed.
His family, who had no means to get his body back to India, was devastated after hearing the news.
After the news was shared on social media by Indian Weekender and some of Mr Deol’s friends, the Indian community came forward to support the family back in India. Many have contributed towards providing financial aid for by Mr Deol’s family.
A Sikh organisation Deg Tegh Fateh Sikh Society Inc. Christchurch that has been collecting funds—updated on Facebook that by January 12, they had received $16,808.43, which will be transferred to his father’s account in India.
Minister of External Affairs of India Sushma Swaraj and Indian High Commissioner Sanjiv Kohli extended their condolences to the grieving family. All the expenses to fly the body back to India on Friday, January 6 were borne by the Indian High Commission in New Zealand.