Even as Hamid Ansari’s parents wait for their son, who went missing six months ago in Pakistan, to return, they are knocking on every possible door to trace his whereabouts.
Last week, they wrote to Sarabjit Singh’s Pakistani lawyer Awais Sheikh for help.
Fauzia, Hamid’s mother, said, “I wrote to Sheikh last week with details of my son and under what circumstances he left for Afghanistan and how he may have crossed into Pakistan. He said he is visiting India in the next few days and would like to meet us. I hope he will take the issue forward.”
Six months ago, 27-year-old Hamid, a management graduate, went to Kabul for a job interview. According to information his parents received from his friends, he allegedly crossed over from Afghanistan to Peshawar in Pakistan to rescue a friend who was to be married off against her wishes. His parents have not heard from him ever since.
Hamid’s parents have approached the police, consulate, ministry of external affairs, NGOs and parliamentarians. Recently, they met MLA Krishna Hegde who had, in the past, helped in the release of Indians from jails in Pakistan.
His parents are also in talks with families of people who were rescued from Pakistan after much struggle. “I spoke to the kin of Bhavesh Parmar, who returned after spending seven years in a Pakistani prison. He is emotionally unstable after what he went through. I just hope my son does not go through such torture,” said Fauzia, adding that the authorities are not too interested in helping them, considering the strained relationship between the two countries.
Fauzia and her husband are also considering travelling to Pakistan, although they are not sure how practical it is. “I want to go to Pakistan and meet the authorities there. I may even protest outside the Parliament. I don’t know what more I should do to get people to act,” Fauzia said.
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