Indian family in Ajman in dire straits

The New Year has brought further misery to the family of Mir Akhtar Ali, an Indian gym instructor in Ajman, who lost his job two years ago. Ali, his wife and three children were on Monday evicted from their apartment for not paying the rent for eight months.

The landlord had registered a case against them. “They came this morning and asked us to leave immediately. We were not allowed to take our belongings. We are now sitting in our old broken-down car,” Ali’s wife Syeda told Gulf News.

Last Thursday, when Gulf News met them at their apartment, Syeda said the problems began when Ali suffered back problems and lost his job.

“We have been living here for over 13 years…We were doing fine when my husband used to work,” she said. “But two years ago, he experienced severe back pain and underwent surgeries to remove five discs. He also developed complications like diabetes, cholesterol, blood pressure and glaucoma.”

According to her, her husband’s chronic diseases were diagnosed when the family went on a family vacation to Hyderabad in India two years ago. He could not undergo any treatment in the UAE because he lost his job soon after returning from India. Subsequently, their visas also expired over a year and a half ago.

Ali’s wife said their children had stopped going to school almost two years ago. Their eldest son, 17 and a half, and their daughter, 14, used to study in Al Ameer English School and the second son, 16, was a student of The Royal Academy in Ajman.

“We were not able to pay their school fees. The dues piled up to some Dh7,000 and schools told us not to send our kids unless we can clear the dues. I feel sorry for my kids. They have been sitting at home all these days. They can’t even go out and mingle with other kids in this condition.”

Ali hopeful of getting some other job. But nothing has worked due to his ill health.

“Since we overstayed, we couldn’t pay the fines and go back to India. I don’t have any relatives here. The few friends I have are not rich enough to support us or provide us accommodation,” he said.

The couple claimed they were not able to contact the Indian Consulate for help since Ali has been sick and they could not afford to travel to Dubai.

“We take food from Red Crescent and sometimes some neighbours also give us food. There have been days we stayed hungry and had only a meal a day. We are in a very pathetic situation now,” Syeda said, appealing for help from the Indian Consulate and philanthropists.

source : gulfnews