Of futile searches and abandoned hopes

 

The case of 20-year-old Abdullah Abdul Kader’s is one such. That he suffers from a mental derangement and can barely tell his name only made the agony worse for his lower middle class family residing at Moongileri, Pammal near Pallavaram in the southern suburbs of Chennai.

 

On November 17, 2014 Abdullah, the youngest of five brothers among eleven children of the Abdul Kader-Zareena Begum couple, went missing. 

Seven months later, on July 24, he was traced in a government home at Mayiladudhurai.

 

“We scanned the State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB) data and when we were able to match his picture with those out of a home near Nagapattinam, we sent the information to his family,” an officer with the CB-CID said.

 

The District Crime Records Bureau (DCRB) team of the Nagapattinam district matched the data provided to them by the SCRB and the CB-CID with the ones collected by their team from government homes in their district, which led to Abdullah.

 

“Imagine if there were no efforts from any side, the boy would have led the rest of his live at that home only,” an officer with the Anti-Trafficking Cell of the CB-CID said wistfully.

 

The officer was justified in his pride as Abdullah’s family had abandoned all hopes by this time. Abdul Kader, a Modhinar (one who calls for prayers and maintains mosques) at the Pallavaram mosque and his sons used all their powers to trace the missing boy.

 

“After he went missing, we looked for him everywhere - temples, mosques, bus stops, railway stations and hospitals - for more than four months. We put up posters and gave ads in newspapers. But they were of no avail. Then, we left it to Allah,” says Zerina Begum (57), Abdullah’s mother. “We even spread word through Facebook and whatsapp,” adds, A. Sohail (26), his elder brother.

 

Probably, their prayers were answered as Abdullah was found a week after Ramzan. Apart from a vague idea that Abdullah doesn’t like being confined within the walls of his bright yellow painted house, the family members are lost as to how he managed to end up at a place 280 km from Chennai. 

 

“He doesn’t even tell his name. You ask his name, he would probably speak in a mix of Malay-Chinese. But, sir wants to dress up and roam around in bikes. That makes him happy,” says A.Sohail (26) as Abdullah chuckled to his observations.

 

Sohail and his sister-in-law, Zubeida are the only people at home to whom Abdullah apparently listens. Abdullah has injuries on his body, which the family believes to have happened either at the home or inflicted by strangers before he was admitted there. 

 

“If we women had gone to receive the boy, we would have questioned those in the home,” Zubeida says. “Probably, his Vaapa (father) was overwhelmed by the emotion that his son was finally found,” Zareena Begum quickly interrupts her daughter-in-law adding, “At least, our son is alive. We are more than happy.” 

Abdullah’s mother Zareena has sutures on the index finger on her right hand. Abdullah bit her as she didn’t allow him to venture out of the gates after his return from the home. She has no complaints. Her son now ceases to exist in missing posters and paper ads.