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Rlys pay Rs 225 lakh to Pak dad who lost 5 kids in Samjhauta blast
Dwaipayan Ghosh, TNN, 19 January 2010, 12:34am IST
NEW DELHI: Three long years after five of his children were killed in the ghastly Samjhauta Express blast, 50-year-old Rana Shaukat Ali from Faislabad, Pakistan, finally has some reason to smile. Northern Railways on Friday released Rs 22.53 lakh as compensation to Ali's family.
"We have gone through extreme pain these last three years. But now the financial help from the Indian rail ministry will be enough to take care of my child," Ali told TOI over phone.
Ali also had a word of appreciation for TOI. "We are thankful to TOI for their support. It was their periodic articles which helped us to get a patient hearing in different ministries," he said.
But getting the compensation wasn't easy. First, there was a long drawn hearing with the railway tribunal in Chandigarh. When the compensation was released through two cheques totalling Rs 20 lakh along with interest, it was in Indian currency, making it impossible for Ali to withdraw the money in Pakistan.
To get the money through, the railway ministry turned to the MEA for help. "We are grateful to the MEA and the Indian Railways for this gesture," said Rakhsana Akhtar, his wife.
An official at railways's office of chief claims officer said, "The money includes Rs 4 lakh compensation for each for those killed along with an interest at 9.5%. The family was issued Indian cheques earlier, but that cannot be encashed in Pakistan. Hence, we have asked the Ministry of External Affairs to arrange the money for Ali at the Indian Embassy in Islamabad. The amount disbursed will be debited to the ministry of railways. MEA has assured us that the cheque would be dispersed by January 22."
Ironically, the couple observed that the loss of their five children had brought them closer to India. "Our frequent visits were well received here. I do hope we keep visiting this country again and again since the people on both sides of the border love peace."
The Ali family had come on their annual trip to India to visit Rana's brother at Sarai Kale Khan in February 2007. They were on their way home to Pakistan when the blast ripped through Samjhauta Express. Of the couple's six children -- the eldest was 16, the youngest just one -- only one survived.
For a while after the tragedy, it was as if life had come to an end for the couple. Through it all, Ali doesn't forget to thank the Indian government for its support after the event. "Three months after the incident, the Indian Embassy paid us Rs 50 lakh as compensation, Rs 10 lakh each for each of my dead children. Our foreign minister and your prime minister together promised to help me. They kept their promise," he says.
Talking to TOI, Ashok Randhawa, convenor of the South Asian Forum Against Terrorism, said several other families from Pakistan whose kin died in the blasts were yet to get the compensation. "As many as 18 bodies remained unidentified and the blood samples of six others did not match among the 42 Pakistanis who died in that blast," he claimed.
A railway ministry letter however clearly speaks of a policy to deal with such cases. "It is also requested that payment of compensation to Pakistani nationals in other cases... which are yet to be decreed by railway claims tribunal may please be arranged through the High Commission of India in Islamabad," it said.
Dwaipayan Ghosh, TNN, 19 January 2010, 12:34am IST
NEW DELHI: Three long years after five of his children were killed in the ghastly Samjhauta Express blast, 50-year-old Rana Shaukat Ali from Faislabad, Pakistan, finally has some reason to smile. Northern Railways on Friday released Rs 22.53 lakh as compensation to Ali's family.
"We have gone through extreme pain these last three years. But now the financial help from the Indian rail ministry will be enough to take care of my child," Ali told TOI over phone.
Ali also had a word of appreciation for TOI. "We are thankful to TOI for their support. It was their periodic articles which helped us to get a patient hearing in different ministries," he said.
But getting the compensation wasn't easy. First, there was a long drawn hearing with the railway tribunal in Chandigarh. When the compensation was released through two cheques totalling Rs 20 lakh along with interest, it was in Indian currency, making it impossible for Ali to withdraw the money in Pakistan.
To get the money through, the railway ministry turned to the MEA for help. "We are grateful to the MEA and the Indian Railways for this gesture," said Rakhsana Akhtar, his wife.
An official at railways's office of chief claims officer said, "The money includes Rs 4 lakh compensation for each for those killed along with an interest at 9.5%. The family was issued Indian cheques earlier, but that cannot be encashed in Pakistan. Hence, we have asked the Ministry of External Affairs to arrange the money for Ali at the Indian Embassy in Islamabad. The amount disbursed will be debited to the ministry of railways. MEA has assured us that the cheque would be dispersed by January 22."
Ironically, the couple observed that the loss of their five children had brought them closer to India. "Our frequent visits were well received here. I do hope we keep visiting this country again and again since the people on both sides of the border love peace."
The Ali family had come on their annual trip to India to visit Rana's brother at Sarai Kale Khan in February 2007. They were on their way home to Pakistan when the blast ripped through Samjhauta Express. Of the couple's six children -- the eldest was 16, the youngest just one -- only one survived.
For a while after the tragedy, it was as if life had come to an end for the couple. Through it all, Ali doesn't forget to thank the Indian government for its support after the event. "Three months after the incident, the Indian Embassy paid us Rs 50 lakh as compensation, Rs 10 lakh each for each of my dead children. Our foreign minister and your prime minister together promised to help me. They kept their promise," he says.
Talking to TOI, Ashok Randhawa, convenor of the South Asian Forum Against Terrorism, said several other families from Pakistan whose kin died in the blasts were yet to get the compensation. "As many as 18 bodies remained unidentified and the blood samples of six others did not match among the 42 Pakistanis who died in that blast," he claimed.
A railway ministry letter however clearly speaks of a policy to deal with such cases. "It is also requested that payment of compensation to Pakistani nationals in other cases... which are yet to be decreed by railway claims tribunal may please be arranged through the High Commission of India in Islamabad," it said.
