Srinagar, Aug 29: A day before 17-year old Umar Dar of Narbal was killed by paramilitary CRPF allegedly in cold blood on August 14, he took his diabetic mother, Zoona Begum, for medical check-up to a city hospital. But when Umar needed medical help, his mother saw him dying in her arms as paramilitary CRPF stopped people from taking the teenager to hospital.
 It was after a delay of 20 minutes and strong protests lodged by the locals that CRPF allowed them to take Umar to Magam Sub-District Hospital instead of a nearby city hospital. Umar succumbed to his injuries on way to the hospital.
 A witness to Umar’s murder is his 13-year old sister, Bisma Ahad. She was watching from the window of her house when her brother was shot by the CRPF. “I went running towards Umar Baya. I begged before the CRPF men to let me take my brother. But they did not allow,” she says. Bisma is in deep shock and is yet to change her clothes stained by her brother’s blood.
 Umar was shot in chest and abdomen by CRPF minutes before Iftaar, when he was out to take tea for his father Abdul Ahad, a fruit vendor, who was procuring fruits from an orchard.
 Umar was about to take a left turn from a local bridge towards the orchard when CRPF men fired at him, locals said. Umar was to break his fast with his father in the orchard. “Little did he know that he will get bullets instead from the cruel hands,” Zoona said and broke down.
 To add to the family’s tragedy, their house was gutted just four days after Umar’s death, burning everything besides the teenager’s school certificates and clothes.
 Zoona along with her husband and two children now lives in a wooden shed. In one of the corners of the shed, Zoona stares at every child who passes by, longing for Umar’s return.

Lastupdate on : Sun, 29 Aug 2010 21:30:00 Mecca time
Lastupdate on : Sun, 29 Aug 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Mon, 30 Aug 2010 00:00:00 IST