Mir Ehsan
The family had always been poor. But after the disappearance of its bread-earner Mohammad Ayub Khan, the miseries of his wife and three daughters became manifold.
Khan's daughters were minors when Khan disappeared. Now they are eligible for marriage. Already exhausted by the 17 years of search for Khan, his wife Mehtab Begum is worried over the girls' marriage. They are still waiting for his return.
Recalling the day Khan was last seen by the family, Begum says he was arrested by the Border Security Force (BSF). "My husband was picked by troops of 56 and 76 Battalions on October 17, 1990," says Begum and adds that along with Khan, the BSF arrested seven others from neighbouring Gushi village. "All the others were released. Only my husband was detained," she says.
"When my relatives enquired with the BSF officials about my husband, their answer was shocking. They said they had not arrested him," says Begum. She adds: "My husband was arrested in presence of hundreds of villagers. Still, the BSF refused having made the arrest. Is this justice?"
"He was a poor labourer. No official could tell me why he was picked up," she says and adds Khan was innocent.
She and her relatives also met the then Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police of Kupwara. "The officials asked me to maintain patience," she says.
Two years after the disappearance, she got her petition registered with the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. "It was only after the Court intervened that police registered a missing report," she says. "I don't know what police have done in the case so far."
After all these years, people of Khan's village are still surprised over his case. "I know Khan as a neighbour and friend. He was a simple man. He had only one aim, to earn livelihood for his family, especially his three daughters," says Fayaz Ahmad. "Those arrested along with Khan couldn't say as to what had happened to him in custody."
The family had always been poor. But after the disappearance of its bread-earner Mohammad Ayub Khan, the miseries of his wife and three daughters became manifold.
Khan's daughters were minors when Khan disappeared. Now they are eligible for marriage. Already exhausted by the 17 years of search for Khan, his wife Mehtab Begum is worried over the girls' marriage. They are still waiting for his return.
Recalling the day Khan was last seen by the family, Begum says he was arrested by the Border Security Force (BSF). "My husband was picked by troops of 56 and 76 Battalions on October 17, 1990," says Begum and adds that along with Khan, the BSF arrested seven others from neighbouring Gushi village. "All the others were released. Only my husband was detained," she says.
"When my relatives enquired with the BSF officials about my husband, their answer was shocking. They said they had not arrested him," says Begum. She adds: "My husband was arrested in presence of hundreds of villagers. Still, the BSF refused having made the arrest. Is this justice?"
"He was a poor labourer. No official could tell me why he was picked up," she says and adds Khan was innocent.
She and her relatives also met the then Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police of Kupwara. "The officials asked me to maintain patience," she says.
Two years after the disappearance, she got her petition registered with the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. "It was only after the Court intervened that police registered a missing report," she says. "I don't know what police have done in the case so far."
After all these years, people of Khan's village are still surprised over his case. "I know Khan as a neighbour and friend. He was a simple man. He had only one aim, to earn livelihood for his family, especially his three daughters," says Fayaz Ahmad. "Those arrested along with Khan couldn't say as to what had happened to him in custody."
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