The aftershocks of the carnage at Wagah Border in Lahore on Sunday were felt till Karachi as families of the victims laid their loved ones to rest the next day.
Six victims of the suicide attack, who hailed from Karachi, were laid to rest in different graveyards of the city on Sunday evening. The victims from Karachi included two sisters, Sarwar Jahan and Qamar Jahan, residents of Haroonabad, Malir. The sisters, accompanied by other members of the family, were visiting Lahore for vacations and had gone to witness the flamboyant ritual parade by the security forces of Pakistan and India, that fateful day.
"Several of our family members had gone for the tour," said their nephew, Uzair. The other family members were waiting for them in the parking lot when the explosion occurred. "They [aunts] were shopping for souvenirs when the bomb exploded," he said. Both the sisters died on the spot. Uzair added that two other family members were injured and are currently admitted to a hospital in Lahore.
Family members, who were in Karachi at the time, say they came to know about the incident through the media. "After hearing about the incident on the news, we called them and were told that they had indeed been present at the site when it happened," said Uzair. Nevertheless, it was a few hours before they could confirm that their family members were among the blast victims. Both the sisters were laid to rest in Malir graveyard on Sunday.
Separately, the bodies of three friends, Abdul Razaq, Saik and Iqbal alias Sikandar, were also handed over to their families on Sunday morning. Razaq was a resident of Defence Housing Authority (DHA), Saik was from North Karachi while Iqbal lived on Jamshed Road. Razaq, 45, was an employee of a private company and has left behind a widow, a son and a daughter. Iqbal was also his colleague in the company.
The friends were vacationing in Lahore on account of the Muharram holidays. Family members said four of the friends had gone for the tour. "One of their friends had left them to buy something around 10 minutes before the blast," said a family member, sharing the picture taken in front of Wagah Border before the ceremony commenced.
"Iqbal Sahab was a very nice person," reminisced a friend, Abdul Wahab, adding that he has left behind two minor children. "I am worried about his children." All were laid to rest in their areas' local graveyards.
The sixth victim from Karachi, Irfan Qadri was a resident of Babar Market, Landhi. He had gone to Lahore to visit the shrine of Baba Farid of Pakpattan, with some friends, a few days ago. One of his friends in Karachi, Ahmed, said that during their stay in Lahore, they made a plan to watch the parade. "I spoke to him on the phone when they were at the Wagah Border," said Ahmed. He claims he got worried for his friend when news of the explosion and subsequent causalities were aired on the media.
One of Qadri's friends, Rashid, is in a critical condition and is admitted in a hospital in Lahore.
Before leaving for Pakpattan, Qadri had sent his wife and two minor daughters to stay with his in-laws in Tando Allahyar. "He used to sell Haleem in his area," said a family member, adding that he was from a very humble family background.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 4th, 2014.
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