‘Miss my mother, miss the sea’, says 16-yr-old detained for Markaz event

NEW DELHI: Among the 900 foreigners detained in March and April from across the city for allegedly spreading the Covid-19 and defying government orders on large gatherings by attending a congregation of the Tablighi Jamaat, is a 16-year-old from Ukraine.

Though not officially charged by police, the teenager’s passport was seized, and he is currently lodged with his father and 200 others at a school turned into a temporary detention facility in Jamia Nagar, where the detainees sleep in classrooms turned into sleeping spaces.

Coming from a country known for its cold winters, he said he’s finding it difficult to adjust to the scorching heat. “I miss my mother, even though I speak to her and my two elder brothers over video call. I am not sure when I will be able to be with them... and can’t wait to go back,” he said

The teenager’s father, Fazluddin, a businessman, said they had come to India on December 20. It was his second visit to the country. For his son, it was the first.

On the minor being detained, a senior Delhi government official said they followed the Centre’s orders while sending the foreigners to the quarantine centres.