PORT KLANG, Aug 23 — The ashes of the cremated body of Karamjit Singh Karnail Singh, who was on board the ill-fated Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH17, were immersed in the sea off Port Klang today.

His two sons, Amarpal Singh, 22, and Melvinderjit Singh, 21, accompanied by 25 family members and close friends, performed the last rites about 11.40am.

Earlier, the group left the Pulau Ketam jetty in Port Klang in a chartered boat and following a 15-minute journey, it arrived at a spot where the ashes were immersed.

Karamjit’s brother, Dr Rajindar Singh, 65, said the family expressed thanks and gratitude to the authorities over the manner in which Karamjit’s remains were handled.

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“I was taken up by the fantastic job of the Government, especially the military and police personnel in handling the remains of my brother, since it was sent to the KLIA (KL International Airport) yesterday.

“We also found the Sikh bangle (a steel slave bangle known as the ‘kara’) worn by the late Karamjit from among the ashes which we had collected,” he told Bernama when met at the Pulau Ketam jetty here today.

Amarpal, a medical student of Monash University Malaysia, Johor Baharu had said the remains of his late father would be brought home and cremated in Malaysia ever since his family was informed that the remains were identified through DNA testing recently.

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Karamjit, 54, was among 20 victims of Flight MH17 whose remains arrived at the KLIA yesterday.

The employee of ExxonMobil was among 43 Malaysian passengers and crew on board the MAS aircraft when it crashed in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine near the Russian border on July 17.

The Boeing 777-200 aircraft carrying 283 passengers and 15 crew members, was believed to have been shot down by a missile over the troubled area while en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.

Earlier, Karamjit’s family members performed the last rites at the Nirvana Memorial Park in Section 21, Shah Alam about 9.30am before taking the ashes to Port Klang. — Bernama