31 December 2011 Last updated at 19:34 ET

Anuj Bidve murder: Police to fly to India

Anuj Bidve was a postgraduate student at Lancaster University

Two police officers are to fly to India to meet the family of 23-year-old murder victim Anuj Bidve who was shot in the head in Salford on Boxing Day.

Chief Supt Russ Jackson and a family liaison officer will meet Mr Bidve's family and representatives of the Indian authorities.

The father of the Lancaster University student was critical of police after learning of his son's death on Facebook

A 19-year-old man arrested on suspicion of murder and has been bailed.

A 20-year-old man remains in police custody for questioning.

A £50,000 reward has been offered by Greater Manchester Police to find the student's killer.

Assistant Chief Constable Dawn Copley, of GMP, said: "Our family liaison officers are in regular contact with Anuj's family but passing information and updates over the phone is not the best way to communicate in such difficult and tragic circumstances.

"It is important to me personally, and Greater Manchester Police, to have someone from the force meet with Anuj's family at the earliest opportunity and help support them at this time.

"Having conversations face-to-face is absolutely the right thing to do. We will of course also provide whatever support we can throughout the family's forthcoming trip to the UK."

No clear motive

Mr Bidve was in a group of nine male and female Indian students who were visiting Greater Manchester during the holidays.

The students were walking through Ordsall from their hotel towards the city centre at about 01:30 GMT when a man walked across the road and started talking to Mr Bidve.

Moments later he produced a gun and shot the student at close range in the side of the head.

The killer and another man fled on foot towards Asgard Drive and the Ordsall housing estate.

Mr Bidve, who was studying for a postgraduate qualification in micro-electronics, was taken to hospital where he died a short time later.

Police have not established a clear motive for the murder.

However, while there is no definitive evidence pointing to it being racially-motivated, a police spokesman has said officers are treating it as a hate crime "based on the growing perceptions within the community".