Indian management student dies of multiple gunshots in Toronto,

Toronto, had around seven bullets pumped into him on Thursday evening as he stepped outside the Sherbourne TTC subway station on his way to the Mexican restaurant where he worked. The motive behind the killing is not known, and his family and friends have demanded justice for Kartik. Police have not yet released information about a suspect or motive in the shooting. His cousin, Gaurav, said in a tweet: ” My cousin brother Kartik Vasudev was shot dead at a subway station in Toronto yesterday. We still don’t know what happened. Toronto police have not told us anything.” According to the police account, officers found Kartik slumped outside the station’s Glen Road entrance with multiple gunshot wounds around 5 p.m. on Thursday. The homicide squad is now handling the investigation. According to Homicide Canada, Kartik is the 19th homicide victim in Toronto since January this year. Police said Kartik was given medical attention by an off-duty paramedic, before being rushed to St. Michael’s Hospital where he died of his injuries. The suspect in the shooting is a Black male standing five-foot-six to five-foot-seven inches tall of a medium build, who was last seen carrying a handgun and walking south on Glen Road toward Howard Street. Anyone with information related to the shooting is asked to contact police at 416-808-7400 or Crime Stoppers. In a statement on Twitter, the Consulate General of India in Toronto confirmed it was in touch with the family, saying: “We are shocked & distressed at the unfortunate killing of Indian student Kartik Vasudev in a shooting incident in Toronto yesterday. We are in touch with the family and will provide all possible assistance in early repatriation of mortal remains.” External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar expressed grief at the tragedy. “Grieved by this tragic incident. Deepest condolences to the family.” The Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria, said: “Shocked and saddened by this senseless killing of an Indian student in Toronto. Deepest condolences to the family of Kartik Vasudev.” His distraught father Jitesh Vasudev who stays in Ghaziabad has in a tweet appealed to EAM Jaishankar for help. Jitesh said they are not getting any support from Toronto police, and has demanded immediate visa for their family members. Jitesh, in a tweet with a selfie photo of the family taken by Kartik, said: “Hello Sir, I am father of Kartik Vasudev, we need support from GOI to get my son’s body back to India and justice for my son. The culprit should be caught immediately. We are not getting any support from Toronto police. We need immediate visa for our family members. Pls support.” The marketing student made the long trip to Toronto in January after three years of studies in India. Vasudev said his son had worked hard to make the journey and thought that Canada was a safe place. “He was loving this country and was saying that this was a very good country,” Vasudev said. “We can’t even believe that this has happened to my son.” A candlelight vigil is set to take place in Nathan Phillips Square on Sunday in Kartik’s memory. Karthik’s younger brother is a student of DAV school Sahibabad. The DAV school is holding a silent candle march demanding justice for Kartik at 6 pm on Sunday. They have appealed on social media for students and friends to join the march, with the hashtag #justiceforkartik. The family has demanded the CCTV footage of the subway station and a fair investigation into the killing. Seneca College, in a tweet, extended condolences at the death: “The Seneca community is saddened to hear of the tragic death of Kartik Vasudev, a first-semester Marketing Management student. “Our thoughts are with Mr. Vasudev’s family, friends and classmates.” “Why has this happened to him? I don’t know. Why he killed my innocent son, I just want to know,” Vasudev told CTV News Toronto on Saturday while fighting back tears. “If he wanted something from him, he could have snatched it. Why has he killed him? It’s a brutal murder.” “He was shot six or seven times, that was very brutal. I just want to know what happened. What was the reason behind that?” Vasudev said, speaking from India. In an interview to The Star, Jitesh said: “We have lost everything. He was just trying to fulfil his dreams; it was his dream to come to Canada.” According to his father, Kartik had spent the last three years studying hard to be accepted into school in Toronto. When he got word last fall that he had been accepted to Seneca College to study global business management, he was elated. He was particularly drawn to the safety and opportunities in Canada, his father said, adding: “We were talking with him two or three times a day, and he was so, so happy.” Kartik had made friends and had just gotten a part-time job at the Mexican restaurant just two weeks ago, Jitesh Vasudev said. The last time he and his wife spoke to their son was Thursday afternoon, when Kartik was eating his lunch before he went to work. On Friday morning they heard that Kartik’s manager had called his roommate because he had not shown up for his shift. Friends called police to report Kartik missing, and were able to identify his bag, which officers had found at the scene. Jitesh Vasudev then received the call from police that his son had died in hospital. “He was very polite, very sensitive, very loyal child. Everybody, family, friends, everybody loves him very much,” he said. “I don’t know what happened, but I’m trying to find out with the local police, please tell me what happened to my son.” “He was just going to his job, for his daily routine,” he said. (UNI)