Ashfaq

MEWAT: Ashfaq (17) dreamt of becoming a maulvi and raise his voice from the minaret of the local mosque-cum-madrassa to call out the faithful. On Friday, the same minaret came tumbling down and crushed him during the storm, but not before he had saved more than 20 lives. A hero in death, Ashfaq was one of the six children of Din Mohammed’s family.Thousands gathered at Bumbaheri village on Sunday to attend a prayer meeting for Ashfaq. While his father is both proud and sad, Ashfaq’s mother Jaituni Begum said, “With the crashing of the roof and walls of the madrassa , my world came crashing down.”“By the age of 14, he had learnt 30 chapters of the Quran. My son was an intelligent, affectionate and brave boy,” Jaituni said. “Since the accident, I couldn’t gather the courage to face my wife. She is inconsolable and I don’t know what to tell her. My three-year-old daughter asks me where have I hidden her brother,” said Din Mohammed, fighting his tears.There were 22 students inside the madrassa when the accident happened. Locals said it was a result of strong winds. A heavy asbestos sheet, part of the cover of a shed 50m away, flew in the wind and hit the minarets. They finally collapsed on the roof of the madrassa. “As the minarets and the walls started to collapse, Ashfaq — instead of running to save his life — helped his friends evacuate. As he pulled 21-year-old Mohammed out, one of the minarets fell on him,” said Mohammed Sabir, a relative.The maulanas rushed Ashfaq to the government hospital in Pinangwan, from where he was referred to the government hospital in Mandikhera and then to Shaheed Hasan Khan medical college in Nalhar. Considering the seriousness of his injuries, the doctors finally referred him to Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital.Enroute to Delhi, Ashfaq asked his father for some water, however, the doctor in the ambulance advised against it.“Ashfaq made repeated requests for water. He said he would leave us now, and if possible, he should be given some water. He said otherwise he would die without having water,” recounted his father. “Then I helped him drink some water. Minutes later, my son breathed his last,” said a wailing Din Mohammed. His funeral was conducted on Saturday.On Sunday, chairman of Haryana Waqf Board Rais Khan announced Rs 10 lakh for the repair of the madrassa and Rs 2 lakh for the boy’s family. However, Din Mohammed immediately announced that the compensation money too should be donated to the madrassa. Another student, Abid Hussain (20), who was also injured in the accident is undergoing treatment at Shaheed Hasan Khan Medical College in Nalhar.