The family members of Abdul Jalil Abdul Shaikh, 50, who sustained severe injuries in the accident that took place at Marine Drive in the wee hours of Wednesday, said that errant driver Sushil Kothari should be given life imprisonment by the court, so that he too feels some pain.
Shaikh was driving the two-wheeler while his relative Habib Zulfikar Mohammad Qureshi, 48, was the pillion rider. Qureshi died on the spot.
“We received a phone call from an unknown person who informed us that Shaikh and Qureshi had met with an accident. The whole family was shocked,” said Shaikh’s twenty-two year-old daughter Farheen.
Wasting no time, the family members rushed to hospital. “My uncle (Qureshi) had succumbed to his injuries and my father is battling for his life at Saifi Hospital. He has sustained injuries in the legs and back. I could barely look at him as he was writhing in pain. He cannot even speak at the moment. I want my father to recuperate soon,” said Farheen, weeping. She said that her father is a businessman and she has two brothers.
“Uncle Qureshi was the sole breadwinner for his family. He is survived by nine children, including seven daughters. I don’t know what kind of fate awaits them,” added Farheen.
She further said that Shaikh and Qureshi, after completing their namaaz, had gone to Marine Drive and were returning home. “Around 1am, I had a conversation with my father over telephone. I cannot imagine that minutes later he would meet with such a terrible accident.”
Farheen also said that Kothari’s act is unjustifiable. “He should have stopped his vehicle and taken the injured men for treatment. It was a heartless act. His father had come to the hospital early morning and was not ready to accept that Kothari was drunk at the time of the accident,” she alleged.
“Such a person should be behind the bars for the rest of his life and his family should feel the pain of losing a dear one. We demand the strictest of action against the culprit.”
