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Practical, clever, strong… Jacintha worked in Mumbai before Muscat and Kuwait and then the UK, say ex-colleagues based here
Jacintha Saldhana would have never have committed suicide and her death should be thoroughly probed.

That is the firm belief and opinion of her former classmates, friends and colleagues, many of whom are based here in the UAE.

Jacintha, working as a nurse in the King Edward VII hospital received a call from two prankster Australian radio jockey she, in absence of a receptionist, passed on the call to the desired destination.

Mrs Saldhana put the call through to Duchess Kate’s ward, where an unnamed colleague gave details of the duchess’s treatment for severe morning sickness.

A recording of the conversation was broadcast on the 2Day FM station with the DJs gleefully boasting about their successful hoax Few days later Saldhana was found dead in in the nurse’s accommodation under mysterious circumstances.

Grieving husband Benedict Barboza has revealed his fury to as he struggles to come to terms with the suicide of his beloved wife.

He is not alone.

People who knew her during her college days at the Father Muller’s School of Nursing in Mangalore described her as bold, smart and a very hardworking girl.

Speaking to Emirates 24|7, Stella M, her colleague and classmate who now works at Welcare Hospital in Dubai says, “The news of her suicide was very shocking.”

“We were in the same batch (1984-89) at the nursing school in Mangalore.

“I still cherish a lot of memories of the good old student days. We were in touch on Facebook. The account has been deactivated after her death,” she says.

Describing Jacintha during her student days, Stella says, “She was very dedicated to her profession, very friendly with patients and devoted to the nursing profession.