Four Gujrat youth found dead in Skardu

Four friends, including three young members of the same family, died in a road accident during a leisure trip to Skardu.

The news of their deaths was confirmed after eight days of uncertainty.

The four friends — 36-year-old Wasif Shehzad, 21-year-old Umar Ehsan (resident of Kot Ghakka), 23-year-old Salman Nasrullah (resident of Jassoki), and 22-year-old Usman Dar (resident of Saroki) — had left Gujrat on May 12 for a sightseeing trip to Skardu.

After remaining untraceable for several days, their vehicle was finally discovered during a search operation. It had plunged 400 to 500 feet into a ravine.

Rescue teams and local residents, retrieved three bodies from inside the wrecked vehicle, while the fourth was found near the riverbank outside the vehicle.

On May 16, Usman had last contacted his family to inform them of their next destination. That message was his final communication.

Salman Nasrullah had returned to Pakistan two months earlier after spending nine years in Italy. He had been staying with his maternal uncle while waiting to rejoin his family abroad. During this time, he and his cousins planned a trip across Pakistan, aiming to create lasting memories in Skardu's scenic valleys. This journey ended in tragedy for all four.

Speaking through tears, Umar Ehsan's father, Muhammad Ehsan, shared that he had reluctantly agreed to his son's request to travel, noting Umar's ambition to become a chartered accountant.

"I gave in to his insistence," he said, "Had I refused, maybe they would still be alive."

Ehsan also grieved the loss of his nephew, Salman, and son-in-law Wasif, whose two young daughters are now left without their father's care. "My daughter has been widowed at such a young age," he added.