'Please Leave us Alone, We haven't been Able to Sleep' Suspects' Family Pleads
by Aaksh Poojari Polali in Bangalore
For Daijiworld Media Network
Bangalore, Jul 7: As the suspense over the possible involvement of three family members of Bangalore-based doctors in the failed Glasgow bombing attempt is still on, the families of suspects are living in a traumatic state. Ever since Dr Haneef and Dr Sabeel were detained and the news that the injured Kafeel hailed from Bangalore was confirmed, these two families are spending sleepless nights
Aakash Poojari, daijiworld's correspondent in Bangalore, managed to get access to the family members for a brief period.
People gathered in front of Kafeel's house
But they are totally shattered and accordingly refused to answer any leading or controversial questions.
Firdous, wife of Dr Haneef, though shattered with the news she received, has been trying to maintain balance and tries to be bold.
"It is very sad that just because my husband had one-way ticket he was suspected and detained. It was our plan that once my baby's documents got cleared we were to go back together. We had no sure idea as to how long it will take to clear the documents. That was the only purpose of my husband's holding the one-way ticket," said Firdous to daijiwrld correspondent.
Woman police accompanying Kafeel’s family members for interrogation
''We used to meet Sabeel. He was in the UK. There he used to come once in 15 days. He is a very friendly person, very outgoing. He speaks to everyone and is very helpful,'' said Firdous, wife of Mohammed Haneef.
Dr Haneef's apartment and Dr Kafeel's house at Banashakari Bangalore has been attracting public and media attention and it has deprived the family of its privacy.
At Dr Kafeel's house, family members were seen frantically begging journos and visitors, 'Please leave us alone, we are spending sleepless night, pls do not trouble us more'
It was quite understandable and justifiable as only parents and close family members can realize the pain behind the whole episode.
"Allah is great. My son will come out clean. I have full faith in Allah and my son...'" Dr Haneef's mother broke out, as she spoke to daijiworld correspondent.
''He is an innocent boy, I am sure he is innocent; it is a test from Allah,'' said Zakia Ahmed, Mother of Sabeel and Kafeel.
Sabeel is a friendly kind of person, according to the wife of second cousin of Mohammed Haneef, the other doctor from Bangalore being questioned in connection with the attack.
Haneef's mother, sister, wife and Haneef
''Both the boys were very good. They were polite; they did not drink tea or smoke - there was nothing bad about them,'' said N Afsar, a neighbour.
News agency adds the following information:
The pressure is mounting on the family of Sabeel and Kafeel Ahmed, the two brothers who along with their second cousin have been named in connection with the UK terror plot.
Apart from international media interest, it is now the police who are extremely interested in this family of successful professionals based in Bangalore.
Both parents of the two men, Maqbool and Zakia Ahmed, are doctors who had worked abroad.
Their elder son, Kafeel, became a well-qualified engineer with a PhD from the UK and the younger son, Sabeel was working as a doctor in the UK after graduating from the well-known BR Ambedkar Medical College in Bangalore.
Their daughter, Sadia, is also studying medicine.
Now there is fear, social stigma and an ever-increasing sense of despair as both the sons of the family are being linked to a failed terrorist attack.
Kafeel told his family on May 5, 2007, that he was working on a confidential project on global warming.
He had also told them that he would be inaccessible, even on phone and Internet, for about a week.
In his last conversation with his family on June 30, Kafeel called from Iceland to say the earlier presentation had failed and asked them to pray for him.
Apartment where Haneef's family stays
Investigators suspect by 'confidential project', he may have been referring to the terror plot. And 'failed presentation' could be interpreted to mean a foiled attack
But as they would not seem to have heard from Kafeel after the attack, it looks more and more likely that he is the man lying with severe burns in a hospital in Glasgow.
The police in Bangalore have been showing increased interest in the family.
The DCP of the crime branch had a two-hour session with the family on Thursday night and spent more time with them on Friday afternoon.
Immediately after that, Kaleef and Sabeel's mother and sister left their home to what they hoped would be a more peaceful place.
But, it appears that for this Bangalore family, peace of mind seems to be a very distant prospect.
Haneef's family moved by PM's reaction
The family of Mohammed Haneef, a suspect in the foiled UK terror plot, on Friday said they were touched by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's concern over the agony the mothers of the detained persons were undergoing.
"We appreciate the Prime Minister's reaction to our pain. It only shows how sensitive he is to the concerns of the people," Haneef's father-in-law Ashwaq Ahmed told PTI.
"It is a reflection of a sensitive individual speaking," he said, while reacting to the prime minister's emotional statement that he had not been able to sleep after seeing the pain of the mothers of the detained persons.
Haneef's sister
Prime Minister had on Friday said he was perturbed by the trauma expressed by Haneef's family and has virtually been sleepless after seeing his mother airing her pain.
He said the family also appreciated and supported the Prime Minister's statement about avoiding labelling any nationalities as terrorists. "We fully appreciate and support his statement on the issue," Ashwaq said.
Maintaining that his son-in-law is innocent, he said that he wanted to appeal to the prime minister through the media to ensure the safe return of Haneef.
"He is innocent and now we are convinced that the truth alone can help us," he said.
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