Abdul Rasheed Wani, 50, of Sumbal town in Bandipora district was hit by pellets in his right eye when government forces opened fire about two weeks ago to disperse students who were protesting against killing of militants and civilians in South Kashmir. Wani, the lone breadwinner of the family is now confined to his bed and staring at dark future.
“He was our only hope. We don’t have any property which we could sell for treatment of my husband. My children are very young and they are yet to know that why their father’s eyes were blinded,” said Wani’s wife, Ayesha who resides in an old house with her two minor children, including a three-month old baby at Wani Mohalla, Sumbal. “He was not pelting stones that day. He was busy with his own work. He was a street vendor who sold stuff on a handcart near Bandipora-Srinagar road from the last four years,” she said.
Wani’s right eye is completely damaged by pellets. Doctors have said that he might never regain vision in his right eye. ‘I didn’t see where protests were going on that day. When pellets pierced my eyes, I lost my consciousness and I don’t know who took me to the hospital,” recalls Wani who is bedridden at his home. “It was only the neighbors who helped us by pooling some money. Government has not reached us,” said his wife who appealed to the district administration to provide them some compensation for his treatment.