Pulwama, May 30: A teenage labourer from a Bihar village has reportedly lost sight in one of his eyes after being hit by pellets when he was caught in clashes on previous Friday in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
Mohamed Sahanbaj, 14, son of Bulki Miya, resident of Patharaha village of Araria district in Bihar, who was hit by pellets during clashes which erupted on past Friday after killing of Ansar Gazwat-ul-Hind chief, Zakir Musa, has reportedly lost sight in his right eye.
Recalling the event while talking to ‘Kashmir Images’, Sahanbaj said that he went to a shop for getting some food items after offering Friday congregational prayers at a Jama Masjid in main town Pulwama.
He said he was waiting his turn to get rice from the shop when some youth started pelting stones on security forces who retaliated by firing tear-gas and pallets. “I was so scared and started running to safety,” he said, adding that “after some time I came back to the shop to collect the food items.”
“Something came from nowhere and hit my face,” he said, adding “I fell on ground, everything looked blurred and after about half-an-hour some locals took me to the hospital,” he said.
From District Hospital Pulwama, he was referred to SMHS Hospital in Srinagar where he was under treatment for three days.
The poor boy has hundreds of pellets in his face, eyes and head, according to medical reports.
His only family member here, his elder brother Shahwaj, who is attending him in a rented room at Bellov village of Pulwama, said that doctors have informed him that his brother has lost eyesight in right eye and he has only a feeble sight in left eye.
The elder brother of the non-Kashmiri pellet victim said that Sahanbaj had travelled to Kashmir on seventh of this month. As a construction worker, he had worked for only nine days in Pulwama before being hit by pallets.
“He is yet to receive his wages and unable to identify the contractor who had hired him” added his brother.
“He (Sahanbaj) insisted on coming to Kashmir and travelled along with some fellow villagers for daily labour work,” said elder brother, adding that he had to borrow Rs 1500 from his neighbor to travel to Kashmir to attend and look after his injured brother.
He said that they live in a shack in Bihar and have three younger sisters besides physically-challenged mother and old father to look after. Entire family is worried about my brother’s condition.
