Friday, June 13, 2008

Vindictive feudal lord’s carelessness kills poor herder.

Vindictive feudal lord’s carelessness kills poor herder.
Written by: Jawad Mazhar (Rays of Development Organization Fact Finding Team (RFFT))


Sargodha, Pakistan (RFFT) June 10th: A Christian herd boy, Nasir Masih 15 died from rabies because a feudal lord identified as Nawaz Wirk, evaded from providing proper medical treatment to him at Chak (Village) # 48 NB, located 6 Kilo Meters south-east of Sargodha city in predominantly Muslim country Pakistan’s Punjab province. The grief-stricken family said that the landlord kept their severely sick son at his farm house to work and concealed the facts from them for 41 days. Sorrowful family held landlord responsible for the death of their teen aged son, RFFT learnt through the bereaved Christian family.


The bereaved impoverish family told RFFT at the funeral of deceased Nasir Masih that about one and a half month ago a stray dog entered landlord’s farmhouse and bit Nasir Masih. The stray dog was infected with acute virus of Rabies.

Replying to a question the father of deceased Nasir Masih said that his son was totally unaware that the stray dog was infected of rabies. The father added that stray dog bit his son and ran away after transferring rabies’ virus into his son. The sorrowful father also said that symptoms of lyssa appeared in his son a few days after the stray dog bit him, but the landlord terrorized Nasir Masih by threatening him to torment his family and abstained from administering medical treatment of rabies to him. (Nasir Masih)

The father of the demised herd boy said though his son Nasir Masih was suffering from ailment and all the symptoms of lyssa were evident from his physical condition, cruel feudal lord neither granted him leave nor administered medication for the rabid Masih.

Talking to RFFT feeble mother of deceased Nasir Masih said that on 38th day after the stray dog’s bite, when Nasir Masih suddenly fell faint from the pain and extreme shivering, and his condition got lethally dangerous, the sinister landlord called Nasir Masih’s father and asked him to take his son home and threatened him of dire consequences, incase he tried to report police. She added that stone-hearted feudal lord also threatened us to implicate us into country’s controversial blasphemy laws.

Replying to a question about the treatment of Nasir Masih, demised Masih’s mother said that they took him to several quacks and wizards for remedy, but all their efforts were futile, none of them could diagnose or redeem their son from the mysterious ailment. She said that their son was so much terrified that he averted revealing the truth even to us, his parents.

Other family members of deceased Nasir Masih apprised RFFT when all the quacks and wizards failed to cure Nasir Masih; we decided to take him to the provincial capital Lahore for the indispensable medical treatment.

Family members said that on the doctor’s inquest about the genesis of the disease. Demised Nasir Masih turned down doctor’s opinion of stray dog’s bite, due to the threats and terror of the feudal lord. They added that doctor immediately admitted Nasir Masih to the ‘Intense Care Unit’ (ICU) and started treatment. The bereaved relatives sorrowfully stated that when doctor and other friends impelled tenderly to Masih to reveal the actual cause of the genesis of the disease, he at last admitted that a rabid stray dog had bitten him. He also asserted that the feudal lord had warned him of dire consequences, if he would tell the truth to any body including his parents.


After the revelation of the cause of the disease, and obtaining results of various medical test reports, Doctors finally came to the conclusion that the poor herd boy was suffering from Rabies.

After this conclusion, relatives of deceased Masih said doctor administered him an injection. Somber relatives added that till than the rabies virus had reached and damaged the brain of tender aged Nasir Masih. Dispirited family apprised RFFT that shortly after the administration of injection, Nasir Masih passed away silently.

Ferhan Mazher, Chief of a non-governmental rights and advocacy organization ‘Rays of Development Organization’ (ROD), Tahir Naveed Chaudhary member of provincial assembly of Punjab and Farrukh Tanvir Chaudhary Christian youth leader sternly condemned the regrettable episode of the murder of a Christian herd boy due to the carelessness of the feudal lord Nawaz Wirk and condoled with the bereaved family.

Tahir Naveed also said that this is a great loss for the community which can not be replenished. He asserted that we would stand with the victim family and ensure that the justice is served to them.

Ferhan Mazher told RFFT that ROD is toiling to build a society free of interfaith violence and discrimination. He added that ROD envisions a society with democracy, education, health and freedom for all irrespective of their faith, color, caste or parlance.

Farrukh Tanvir Chaudhary, Christian youth leader said that we are doing untiring efforts to obliterate the discriminatory laws including the controversial black Blasphemy Laws of the country. He called for the registration of a case against the cruel feudal lord and bring him to the book. He urged that police can play a decisive role in abolition of the hostile attitude against the religious minorities of Pakistan and put an end to the extremism and intolerance of fanatic Muslim men and women.





No comments: