Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Live
Families still living in hope
BHIWANDI: It has been more than five months since Shabbir Qureshi, 33, hugged his threeyear-old-son Museb. Since the fateful day of September last year when the Jilani Building in which he was staying collapsed in Bhiwandi, Qureshi is leaving no stone unturned to look for his son, whose body was never found at the site.
Like Qureshi, the family of 28-year-old Shabnam Mohammad Ali Shaikh, too has not received their daughter’s body.
Qureshi said, “I have not heard about my son Museb since the day of the crash. I have asked every authority. However, none of them is able to give me any answer. His body was never found among the debris. I don’t know if he is alive or dead.”
The building collapse killed 38 and injured 25.
Qureshi, who runs a mutton shop, has produced all the valid documents of his son to police and also lodged a missing complaint at Narpoli police station.
Senior police inspector of Narpoli police station, MB Shinde, said, “Although a complaint of the child missing was raised, we could not trace him yet. The investigation was carried out from all the angles, but the boy wasn’t found.”
In another such case, the family of Shabnam, 28, who died in the incident, also did not receive her body. “There was an unclaimed body at the hospital which police said was my sister’s. But I denied as it did not match my sister’s physique and features. How can I go wrong about my sister?” said Nilofer Mohammand Ali Shaikh, 34.