“We can’t believe he would do something like this,” Sethunath said.
According to him, Sugathan was a family man and the couple enjoyed a happy married life. “This is very similar to what the police said: it could have been a moment of sudden provocation.”
He also noted the lack of a suicide note as significant. “If it had been a mutual decision, the couple would have left a note. The fact that no note was found strengthens the suspicion that this was something else entirely,” he said.
Finish, go home
Sethunath revealed that Sugathan had, in fact, actively planned to end his life in the UAE and return to Kerala permanently. He had been looking to sell his company and had asked Sethunath to help find a buyer.
“I had suggested a team and they had discussions and finalized the deal. But the couple said they had already booked a holiday trip to northern India and would formalize everything after returning. His plan was to sell his major stake but keep one stake to keep his investor visa here,” Sethunath said.
Sugathan had also talked about wanting to develop his own homestead, his friend recalled, where he could finally rest. “He said he needed some peace and a quiet retirement,” Sethunath said.
Long line at the funeral
Prasad Sreedharan, another long-time RAK resident and community volunteer, traveled two hours into Kerala to attend the couple’s funeral after he returned home on a short break. What he saw there told its own story.
“There was a long line of vehicles of people who came to pay their respects. That alone was a testament to the kind of man he was,” Sreedharan said.
As reported earlier by Gulf News, the couple’s bodies were buried instead of cremated, an unusual step for a Hindu family, apparently to preserve the remains in case investigators need to carry out further examinations.
Sreedharan described Sugathan as someone who was truly loved in the area around their home in Kollam. He said Sugathan held two community gatherings each year, inviting neighbors and well-wishers from across the area. “People in his neighborhood told me he did it without fail,” Sreedharan said.
He noted that Sugathan had also been a member of his community group at RAK and the two spoke regularly. “He generously supported community events. Because of his construction company, he was known to many Arabs and Emiratis who had built villas for him. He bought his property here as well and built his dream house,” he said, recalling attending the housewarming.
Sugathan’s family had also attended the wedding ceremonies of Sreedharan’s children at home.
Business, holidays and no-shows
Sreedharan said Sugathan’s business, which had slowed down during the Covid-19 pandemic like many others, had recovered well over the past two years. He had also diversified into hospitality in Kerala, running a 45-room three-star hotel before eventually renting it out.
Just two weeks before his death, the couple, along with about ten family members, had been on a holiday trip to northern India, he said, noting that this made the tragedy even harder for friends to understand.
“They had booked their seats to fly to the UAE on Saturday evening. On Friday, they had even left their luggage at the airport to check in early, as was their custom. Unfortunately, they never got that flight,” Sreedharan said.
He said the family members were frequent travelers who divided their time between Ras Al Khaimah and Kerala, maintaining homes in Thiruvananthapuram and Kadakkal in Kollam, the latter being where the tragedy unfolded.
“I can’t understand it. Many are assuming that there was some problem between them. But I would never have expected something like this,” he added.
