Indian Student Chandrashekar Pole Killed In Dallas; Family Seeks Government Help

A 28-year-old Indian student from Hyderabad, Chandrashekar Pole, was fatally shot while working the night shift at a gas station in Denton, Texas, on Friday evening, marking the second violent death of an Indian national in the Dallas area within a month. Pole, who had relocated to the US in 2023 for postgraduate studies, was ambushed by unidentified gunmen during what authorities believe was a robbery attempt. The incident has devastated his family, who are appealing to the Telangana government for assistance in repatriating his remains, amid growing concerns over the safety of Indian expatriates in the region.

Born on April 4, 1997, in L.B. Nagar, Pole completed his Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) in India before enrolling in a master's programme in data analytics at the University of North Texas in Dallas. Having graduated six months ago, he supported himself through part-time work at the gas station while job hunting in his field. Local police reported that Pole was shot twice in the chest and succumbed to his injuries before medical help arrived. One suspect has been detained, but investigations continue to identify accomplices and motives, with Dallas authorities classifying it as a targeted attack during an overnight shift.

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLAs T. Harish Rao and Sudhir Reddy visited Pole's family in Hyderabad on Saturday, expressing solidarity and amplifying their plea for official intervention. "The pain that the parents are going through... is heart-wrenching," Rao posted on X, describing Pole as a promising Dalit student whose dreams were cut short. Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy conveyed condolences, assuring full support for repatriation. The Indian Consulate in Houston is coordinating with US officials to expedite paperwork, reflecting a pattern of swift diplomatic responses to such tragedies involving the diaspora.

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This killing eerily parallels the September 10 beheading of Chandra Mouli "Bob" Nagamallaiah, a 50-year-old Karnataka-origin motel manager at Dallas's Downtown Suites. Nagamallaiah was savagely attacked with a machete by co-worker Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, a 37-year-old Cuban migrant with a prior carjacking conviction, following a dispute over a broken washing machine.

Surveillance footage captured the horrific assault in front of Nagamallaiah's wife and son, with the suspect decapitating the victim, kicking his head into the parking lot, and discarding it in a dumpster. Cobos-Martinez, released from immigration custody in January despite deportation efforts, faces capital murder charges and remains in Dallas County Jail.

The back-to-back incidents have ignited alarm within India's 4.5 million-strong US diaspora, particularly among Telugu and Kannada communities, prompting calls for enhanced safety advisories from the Ministry of External Affairs. Former US President Donald Trump condemned Nagamallaiah's murder, vowing stricter immigration enforcement. As Pole's family grapples with unimaginable loss, these events underscore the vulnerabilities faced by Indian professionals abroad, from student workers to small business owners, in high-crime urban pockets like Dallas.

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