‘How did he reach Pak?’

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Back home: Bhavesh Parmar flanked by MP Priya Dutt and his mother Hansaben on his return to Mumbai

Bhavesh’s father’s sudden death shattered my life in a manner that I’m still finding tough to deal with. Ever since my husband’s demise, my life has been an alternating cycle of crises and tragedies. We were a very close-knit family as Bhavesh is our only son.

One day after a brief spell of discomfort my husband visited a doctor and was diagnosed with blood cancer.
When Bhavesh, who was very close to his father, learnt of his illness, it was as if time had stopped for him. I knew he wasn’t dealing with the news too well but the subsequent days of no debilitating symptoms put him considerably at ease.
Slowly my husband’s condition started to worsen and this meant multiple trips to the hospital. At that time Bhavesh was working as a computer professional with a multi-national company and decided to avail of leave so that he could be by his father’s side during these hospital trips. However, the leave was not sanctioned and Bhavesh, dejected by the work situation and terrified emotionally, decided to quit his job. Each time my husband’s condition improved after a hospital trip, weeks later it would again take a turn for the worse.
Bhavesh was already not dealing with his father’s condition very well and his death served him a mighty blow. He rapidly slipped into depression, lost interest in the goings-on of life and emotionally retreated. I thought it was his way of coping with his father’s demise. The next thing I knew Bhavesh went missing from our Vile Parle home in early January 2007.
I had just lost a husband to cancer and I was not prepared to lose my only son. Those were the most frightening days of my life. I had no idea where he had gone, what had become of him or if I may ever see him again. I could barely grieve my husband’s death because I was so preoccupied wishing and hoping to hear some news about my son. No mother should be put through that ordeal.
One day in mid 2008, the special branch of the Mumbai police notified me that he was in a jail in Pakistani. How on earth did he reach Pakistan, I wondered. He was last seen at Vile Parle and I was baffled about how he crossed the border. Yet, the Mumbai police was offering me a glimmer of hope, so I decided to take up the matter with higher authorities.
Member of Legislative Assembly Krishna Hegde and Member of Parliament Priya Dutt have given me unwavering support right through this ordeal. They were instrumental in pursuing the matter with the Pakistan High Commission, ensuring that they follow up on the case, using every contact and source in their capacity to make Bhavesh’s plight heard loud and clear. Mr Hegde even accompanied me to the Golden Temple in Amritsar, to pray for my son’s release.
Finally, in October 2012, we learnt that Bhavesh would be released and be free to cross the Wagah-Attari border. The days that followed were filled with excitement about reuniting with my son, yet a part of me was deeply concerned about how this jail experience would have affected him. The last time I had met him, he was in depression and now I am scared how being in a jail may have worsened his condition.
The moment finally arrived and Bhavesh was finally released, putting an end to a very long wait. I couldn’t hold back my tears when I saw him. It seemed so surreal. He appeared fit and healthy, though I could recognise a lost expression in his eyes. He seemed disoriented to me. He couldn’t believe he was in India
and kept insisting that he was still being kept in Pakistan. Mr Hegde and Ms Dutt, who were with me the day he was released, appealed to the media to not trouble Bhavesh with questions.
Bhavesh spent fewer years in jail than he might have, as he was not charged with spying. However, it is not yet clear how he went to Amritsar in the first place, let alone board the Samjhauta Express and end up in Pakistan.
Bhavesh told the immigration authorities that he was made to sit in Samjhauta Express. He said he fell unconscious after a while and doesn’t remember the exact sequence of events, but he found himself in Pakistan.
While I am ecstatic about his release, I am worried about his mental health. Ever since he has returned, we are just letting him be and not indulging in long conversations with him so that he can relax. He is looking good but does not want to talk. He complains that his head aches when he talks.
We will wait for a while and see if he needs any medication. If required, we will then start medication best suited for him. I only hope that he will be completely fine. While Bhavesh is back, there are several innocent Indian nationals who are languishing in Pakistani jails. Bhavesh ruined his youth by being locked up in jail for no reason. I pray that no other person meets the same fate.

As told to Pratik Salunke