The Hindu
 
Mangalore, May 17: Voters need the smallest of excuse not to exercise their franchise. But even the trauma of their son being abducted in Afghanistan did not stop the Sarangs from going to the polling booth in Gurukambla near here on Friday.

The family is still grappling with the incident where their son, Sarang Mohammad Naeem, an engineer, was abducted in Herat province of Afghanistan on April 21. The family shrugged aside this long drawn out crisis to cast their vote.

Parents of Mr. Naeem - Mohammad Hussain Sarang and Chand Sultana - were at home having returned after casting their vote. Displaying the indelible ink mark on their left index finger, Mr. Hussain admits that the grief of not knowing the whereabouts of his son is traumatic. This incident, however, did not stop them from exercising their right to vote and discharging our duties as a citizen, he adds.

Does Mr. Naeem too have a right to vote? "Yes," says Mr. Hussain. Noting that his son normally took photocopies of essential documents each time he travelled abroad, Mr. Hussain says this time when he left for Afghanistan in January to take up an assignment with HEB International Logistics at Kabul Air Base, he took all the original documents instead, including the electoral photo identity card issued to him locally.

Rafat Sulthana, Mr. Naeem's wife, who too is enrolled as a voter locally could not exercise her franchise as she has not returned from her mother's place in Mumbai. Mr. Hussain says that the family felt it was better for Ms. Rafat to stay with her parents until such time that crisis in the family blew over. "In fact, Naeem's abductors allowed him to speak to her about 10 days ago and assured her of his well-being," he says.

At Sarang House, the tiny hands of Safa Bhaji, Mr. Naeem's niece, carefully shift the beads from a large jar into a bowl in front of her. Joining her is Nida Nasil, another niece of Mr. Naeem. Sitting close by on a sofa is Chand Sultana, Naeem's mother, who is engrossed reading the Holy Koran. A prayer flits across the lips of Safa and Nida each time she removes a bead and places it inside the bowl.

Mr. Hussain says United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who granted an audience to the family during her recent visit to the city, has assured her that the Centre is doing everything in its powers to secure the safe and early release of Mr. Naeem.