It has been a month since Karachi resident Mortaba Alfiya has been stranded along with her brother and sister-in-law, their kids and two elderly women in a one-room flat in the Bhindi bazaar area in Mumbai.
There have been no known cases of the virus from the area yet. As per the Brihanmumbai Municipal Cooperation, the total number of positive cases in Mumbai is 2,798. On April 17, THE WEEK had carried a report on how the first batch of 41 Pakistanis, who were stranded in India since the start of the lockdown last month crossed the Wagah Border.
The plight of this group was brought to THE WEEK’s notice by retired Supreme Court Justice Markandey Katju, who received emails from Alfiya, seeking help to get back to Pakistan.
The first batch of 41 Pakistanis stranded in Mumbai, Haryana, Agra UP and Delhi got repatriated with help of efforts by justice Katju and Prabhu Dayal, a retired diplomat who has served as India's ambassador to Kuwait and Morocco and had been posted to several locations, including New York and Pakistan.
The group had set out to visit dargahs in Surat, Ahmedabad and Mumbai about a month ago. Alfiya, who was visiting the dargahs with her brother, sister-in-law and their two children, went to the Wagah-Attari border on March 19 to return to Pakistan. But they were told that the Indian government had shut borders on March 14 and the Pakistani side closed the borders on March 19.
Hoping that the situation would change, they camped at the border for two days, said Alfiya. At the border, they met Shamima and Batool, two women in their 70s, also from Karachi, who had come to India to visit the dargahs.
The group, including the septuagenarians, headed back to Mumbai. “Thankfully, with help of the officials from the Indian and Pakistani government, our visas, which would have expired on April 9, has been extended till April 30. But we sincerely hope that we get to return to Pakistan soon,” Alfiya said.
She added that the two kids aged seven and 11 are feeling sad with each passing day as they long to go home. “Medicines of elderly women, who are living with us is nearly over.”
Shamima Shabbir, who came to India for the pilgrimage with her friend Batool Moiz said, “It has been a month since we have been in India now. We miss our family and want to go home. The medicines I have been taking for blood pressure and acidity are nearly running out. I fear for what would happen if my health deteriorates when I’m here. I really wish to be back in Pakistan by Ramzan.”
Alfiya, who dearly misses her husband, a hardware technician, a son who is a university student, a daughter who is a college student and a 12-year-old boy added that the group is also running low on funds. “Luckily, the jamaat nearby has been giving us food every day,” she told THE WEEK. But, the desperation in her tone could be felt as she spoke over the phone.
