{"id":756015,"date":"2026-08-31T22:08:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T22:08:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/756015\/"},"modified":"2026-08-31T22:08:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T22:08:15","slug":"british-family-pleads-with-french-authorities-to-release-body-of-relative-who-died-in-channel-immigration-and-asylum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/756015\/","title":{"rendered":"British family pleads with French authorities to release body of relative who died in Channel | Immigration and asylum"},"content":{"rendered":"

A British family is pleading with French authorities to release the body of a relative that officials have held for five months after he died in the Channel in April.<\/p>\n

Jasmeet Wadhwa, 32, died while attempting to reach the UK<\/a> on a dinghy on 1 April with his mother, Harbans Kaur Wadhwa, after they fled Taliban persecution in Afghanistan in January.<\/p>\n

They endured a difficult two-month journey under the control of people smugglers before reaching northern France<\/a> in mid-March. A man from Sudan, Nagmeldin Adam, 33, died on the same boat. Eight others were rescued, including Harbans Kaur Wadhwa.<\/p>\n

Adam\u2019s journey from Sudan involved detention in Libya for an extended period and many attempts to cross the Mediterranean to Europe<\/a>. He finally reached France in December 2025.<\/p>\n

At least 16 people have died trying to cross the Channel from France to the UK so far this year, with the latest reported death<\/a> on Saturday in a similar part of the French coast to where the two men lost their lives in April.<\/p>\n

Jasmeet Wadhwa and Nagmeldin Adam died in the Channel in April 2026. Photograph: Handout<\/p>\n

Relatives of the two men took part in a demonstration on Monday outside the courthouse in Dunkirk in protest against the French authorities\u2019 refusal to release the bodies. Wadhwa\u2019s relatives travelled from the UK to France to participate. Many who lose their lives trying to cross the Channel are never publicly identified and it is rare to see family members stage a protest of this kind.<\/p>\n

Neither the French interior ministry nor the part of the French police in charge of the bodies responded to questions from the Guardian about why there had been a delay in releasing the two men\u2019s bodies.<\/p>\n

\u2018We shouldn\u2019t have to fight to say goodbye\u2019: Jasmeet Wadhwa\u2019s relatives are urging the French authorities to release his body. Photograph: Family Handout<\/p>\n

Ivnit Singh Wadwa, Wadhwa\u2019s cousin, travelled from his home in west London for the protest. \u201cWe shouldn\u2019t have to fight to say goodbye,\u201d said Wadwa. \u201cWe are very upset with the French judicial system. Our family is waiting for Jasmeet\u2019s body so we can lay him to rest.\u201d<\/p>\n

After witnessing the loss of her son on the dinghy, Harbans Kaur Wadhwa made an application to the Home Office to come to the UK legally under the \u201cone in, one out\u201d scheme<\/a>. This scheme forcibly returns one person to France who has arrived in the UK on a small boat in exchange for accepting another who has applied legally to come to the UK from northern France. She was hoping to join her family in the UK who have offered to accommodate and support her.<\/p>\n

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But the Home Office rejected the application for not meeting the requirements, saying that the identity document submitted was not satisfactory. Afghans generally have an identity document known as a Tazkira.<\/p>\n

A Home Office spokesperson said: \u201cWe are deeply saddened to hear about a death in French waters.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery death in the Channel is a tragedy and a stark reminder of the dangers posed by criminal gangs exploiting vulnerable people for profit. We will continue working relentlessly with the French and our partners overseas to prevent these perilous journeys.\u201d<\/p>\n

In an appeal<\/a> for the release of Jasmeet\u2019s body, the family wrote on social media: \u201cA son. A brother. A life not forgotten. Help us bring Jasmeet back to his family. This is not about politics. It\u2019s about a grieving mother being able to see her son one final time, it\u2019s about a family being able to mourn.\u201d<\/p>\n