Sunayana Dumala, the wife of Srinivas Kuchibhotla, the 32-year-old engineer who was killed after an American man opened fire in a Kansas city bar, said on Wednesday she will return to the United States to “fulfill” her husband’s dream.
"This is my Srinu's dream, and it is the least I could do for my Srinivas – fulfill his dreams through my eyes – and it is for this I have to come back to the USA," said Sunayana.
Sunayana, who reached Hyderabad to perform the last rites of her husband said it in a Facebook post which went viral on Wednesday.
Srinivas was to turn 33 on March 9 and they had plans to visit New Jersey for celebrating their cousin’s engagement.
"He was excited and eagerly waiting for the event, and we had plans to shop this past weekend for the trip. Things turned out differently, I was on my way to India with him in a coffin," she said.
Srinivas’s mother said she will not let her younger son Sai Kishore to return to US. However, Sunayana is determined to return back to US and continue her life that once she and her husband once dreamt of building a house in the foreign country.
Recalling their first time meet in 2006, their lovely relationship of friendship and marriage in 2012 gave credit to Srinivas for giving her courage to pursue her dream in US of studying and attaining a job.
"I started working only recently, May 2016. He'd played a major role in me attaining a job," said Sunayna.
Sunayana now works at Intouch Solutions in Kansas.
Sunayana was on H4 dependent visa while Srinivas was on H1B visa.
Srinivas, the Hyderabad engineer employed with the Garmin headquarters in Olathe was out with his friend and colleague Alok Madasani on February 22 when the attacker believed to be an ex-navy serviceman fired shots at them mistaking them for “Middle Easterners” after shouting “get out of my country”
The 51-year-old shooter, Adam Purinton was charged with murder and attempted murder on February 23.