Pakistani expat turns saviour for Indian girl in Dubai

Indian family from Kerala writes a letter to RTA appreciating Modassir Khadim for his honesty

In a heartwarming development, a Pakistani cab driver in Dubai turned a saviour for an Indian girl who lost her wallet — containing important documents including her UK student visa — just three days before she was returning back after a winter break.

Modassir Khadim, the young taxi driver, went out of his way to return the wallet to Raechel Rose — who was also accompanied by her parents — just when the expat Indian family were in a panic to search the lost wallet, Gulf News reported on Sunday.

Rose, a corporate law student at Lancaster University, was on her way to attend a friend’s birthday party while on holiday in Dubai, when she lost her wallet in Khadim’s cab late evening on January 4.

Pakistani expat honoured for honesty in Dubai

“She had got into his taxi with another friend near Burjuman around 7.30pm on January 4. Just then, they saw their other friends in another car and decided to join them. They immediately left the taxi and Rose didn’t realise that she left her wallet behind,” her mother, Sindhu Biju, said.

Apart from her UK residence permit card [T4 student visa], the wallet contained her Emirates ID, UAE driving licence, health insurance card, credit card and more than Dh1,000 in different currencies.

“She did not have a copy of the visa. When she called the university, she was told she might have to apply for visa again. Though she was in tears, she rushed to the police station to report the matter,” she added.

With the help of the police, the CCTV footages from the mall’s premises were checked. But, the car’s number was not clear.

“Since they had not started the journey, the driver had not started the meter. Hence, it was difficult to trace the driver through the RTA call centre,” Sindhu said.

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Meanwhile Khadim, he said, tried to reach out to the girl by seeking help from RTA call centre, Police station, Emirates office, but all in vain, since it was against the privacy clauses for the entities to disclose the contact number.

“Finally, the RTA call centre called me back when I was finishing my duty at 3.30am and verified the details that matched with their complaint. I was given their number following which I went to their house to drop the wallet,” Khadim shared.

He said the happy father handed him Dh600. “I refused to take it saying she is like my younger sister. But he insisted that I should take it,” said Khadim, the only brother of four sisters back home.

The Indian family from Kerala also wrote a letter to RTA appreciating Khadim.

The original story appeared on Gulf News