Murder of Selven Goburdhan - Indranee: "I urge France to deliver justice for my child"

A week after her son's death in France, Indranee Goburdhan is still waiting for the repatriation of his body and is calling for justice from the French authorities. Selven, 43, was supposed to return to Mauritius for the holidays.

This long-awaited return will never happen. Indranee Goburdhan, 69, was preparing to welcome her son Selven on Friday, December 5, to celebrate the end of the year and their respective birthdays together. But last weekend, this resident of Bain-des-Dames received the worst news: her son, who had been living in France for 13 years, was murdered in his apartment in Saint-Flour, Cantal.

Selven Goburdhan, a trained accountant, had been working as a mason in France, supporting his family back in Mauritius. "My son is an accountant, but in France, he worked as a mason," his mother says, her voice breaking. Early in 2025, after years of paperwork, he finally obtained his residency documents. "Mom, come to France, I'll take you out," he would often tell her. But Indranee always declined: "I'm not used to it, how would I go there?"

For this mother, this return was supposed to be a turning point. She hoped to persuade Selven to settle permanently in Mauritius. "I told him to come back, we miss him," she confides.

A Tragedy with Unclear Details

A few days before his death, Selven had called his mother to inform her that he would send her money on Monday, December 8, for holiday preparations. "He told me if anything was missing, when he comes we would buy it," recalls Indranee.

Today, a week after the tragedy, the family still does not know the precise details of the murder. "We are hearing from French media that he was stabbed multiple times. But officially, no one has come to tell us anything," laments the grieving mother, who is seeking intervention from authorities to clarify the facts.

According to several online French media outlets, Selven's body was discovered by firefighters in his apartment, bearing multiple wounds. The suspect, a 59-year-old neighbor with a known history of theft and drug use, reportedly alerted the police himself after the incident. In the face of this tragedy, Indranee Goburdhan is demanding justice. "I ask France to deliver justice for my child," she insists, demanding that the alleged perpetrator be punished according to the law.

Meanwhile, the family faces another challenge: repatriating the body. For this retired woman with limited means, the cost is prohibitive. Mauritian funeral companies reportedly charge around Rs 250,000, while a French company has quoted nearly Rs 500,000. Through a guardian, the Goburdhan family is trying to finalize the necessary administrative procedures for the repatriation.

Passionate about construction, Selven was one of three children in the family. He moved to France in 2012 with hopes of providing a better future for his loved ones and maintained regular contact with his mother through video calls. "He would show me when he was out in Paris," recalls Indranee, who now wishes to give her son a dignified funeral.