Mumbai: For three days, a mentally retarded young man was telling people that his mother had died. He was even crying. But nobody was ready to believe him as he is mentally retarded. When his relative visited his home, he was shocked to see both parents lying dead.
This is a heart-wrenching story about how lockdown is killing people especially poor and old. Abdulgani Shiledar (65) and Haseena Shiledar (60) were staying in Shastri Nagar in Solapur. Haseena was suffering from various ailments and was not in a position to cook or do any daily chores. They were having a young son Isaq who is mentally challenged.
Shastri Nagar in Solapur is a densely populated area with slums-like homes. Shiledar was a retired employee of Solapur Municipal Corporation. Due to their age, they could not take a bath or cook food. Their relatives used to take care of all these things. Every day, they used to get tiffin from their relatives.
On May 5, their relative Ashfaq Shiledar bathed them and served food. After that, a strict lockdown was imposed in this area. Therefore, Ashfaq could not reach their home for three days. Haseena who was already ill could not bear the heat and hunger for three days and she died. After noticing that his wife had passed away, her husband could not tolerate the shock and he suffered a heart attack resulting in his death.
Isaq noticed his mother’s death, went in his area and told people about the death. But nobody believed him.
“When after three days, I reached home at my uncle and aunty, I found them dead. The hunger and heat might have killed my aunt and uncle could not bear this shock. Due to lockdown, I could not reach their place. The lockdown has created a financial crisis for us. We learnt about their death at least after two days,” Ashfaq told local media.
