Asif Chunawala, his wife Reshma and their teenage daughters and son were due to fly from Guwahati to Tawang on Monday but their flight was rescheduled after the chopper developed a snag.
It was the first and the last chopper ride for the Chunawalas from Andheri (West). The family took the Pawan Hans chopper to avoid road journey to Tawang on Tuesday but died in the crash.
Noor Mahal, a three-storey building in Andheri has turned into a mourning spot for many a Mohammedans residing in and around the area. On April 10 Dr Asif Chunawala, 47, his wife Reshma, 43, daughters Zohra, 18, Zainab, 15, and Zakwan, 11, left for their annual holiday to the North East. On April 17, they were in Guwahati and were to fly to Tawang by a Pawan Hans chopper.
However, the aircraft developed a technical snag and they had to postpone their journey to the next day. Their incident occurred on that unfortunate flight.
“The family had gone to the Northeast on a vacation. They were expected back by the April 24. But now we have got the news of their death,” said Shahnawaz Deria, 32, a businessman and a family friend of the Chunawalas.
“Normally Dr Chunawala travelled alone but this time he decided to fly to Tawang by a chopper as his entire family was with him. It would have taken them 14-15 hours to reach the place by road and the flying time was just an hour and a half,” he says.
Dr Chunawala, a homeopath, was also a spiritual leader and guide for many Muslim youths in India and abroad. “He travelled three days a month to educate people on Islam and did a lot of social work in Assam, Kashmir, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, USA, Malaysia and Indonesia,” Deria said. “Even his wife and children were actively involved in his spiritual work. His eldest daughter a student of Bhavans college, Andheri (West) wanted to be a doctor just like her father,” he added.
“Dr Chunawala was a great guide to all of us and I knew him since I was a teenager,” says Sayyed Naem, 35, another businessman from the area. “He was a good influence on the youth and especially the college students who often sought spiritual guidance from him. It’s a great loss to all of us,” he added.
On Wednesday morning Farooq Chunawala, the brother of Asif left for Guwahati to identify the dead bodies. “The bodies have been identified and the family have decided to conduct the last rites in Guwahati, where he was a cult figure for many,” said Sayyed.
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