Octogenarian to relive migration at rail station

Retired railway employee arrived with family on freight train

LAHORE:

Mohammad Rasheed, who migrated from India with his family upon the establishment of Pakistan in 1947, celebrates the Independence Day every year by visiting the Lahore Railway Station to commemorate his arrival.

The 80-year-old retired railway employee told The Express Tribune that he would visit the station with his grandson to celebrate 75 years of independence with enthusiasm. He said he would inform his grandson about the events of partition of India.

He had arrived at the railway station at the time of the establishment of Pakistan by travelling atop a freight train along with his parents and siblings.

Rasheed took a job in Pakistan Railway Engine Shed in Lahore in 1967.

He said he had retired many years ago but he went to the railway station every year to commemorate the Independence Day.

“At the railway station, the scene of my family’s arrival comes before my eyes. I recall how my family came to Pakistan while enduring violence,” he said.

He says that when he sees the blessings of freedom, he forgets all sorrows.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 14^th, 2022.