Relatives and close friends of veteran crime reporter Nalinee Seelal adorned her body with roses and other flowers and wept during her funeral service yesterday.
Seelal, 53, who remained at the top of her field even after she was diagnosed with diabetes and lost her sight, died at home in Warrenville, Cunupia, on Monday.
At her funeral, which was officiated by Apostle Dr Angela Hector, Seelal was remembered for not only being an excellent and committed journalist but for also being kind and charitable,
Her husband, Sydney Beepath, broke down in tears several times as he recalled the challenges they faced, especially in Seelal’s later years when she was diagnosed with kidney failure and had to do dialysis treatments three times a week.
He said Seelal often cried as she was getting ready to go for treatment but never ceased to motivate him. She said he was her eyesight and during their long drives for treatment, he would describe everything he saw so that she could paint the picture in her head.
Beepath said she was his angel, queen and forever friend, even in death.
He also spoke about her passion for crime reporting.
“What used to make her happy was when she got a big story and she came in the car and would say ‘Ah mashing them up tomorrow.’ She sounded so happy when she was beating the competition but she was the competition. Nalinee Seelal was the competition. She was so damn good with what she was doing,” Beepath said.
Close friend and media colleague, Vashti Achaibar, said Seelal was most eager when she was about to break a big story.
“As a person, she was fearlessly independent. She was dedicated. She believed in getting a scoop. She lived for scoops. To scoop everybody else,” Achaibar said.
Following the funeral service, Seelal’s body was cremated at the Caroni cremation site.