Last year in June, a seven-month-old boy, Samarth came to Delhi along with his maternal grandparents after his uncle Sajid threw acid on his aunts Uzma (17), Nisha (16), Gulistan (21), his maternal grandparents and him. Although his aunt, Uzma lost her battle on June 9 this year at Indraprastha Apollo hospital, the child, now-one-and-a-half-year old, bears scars which have disrupted proper functioning of his body.
Reeling under the trauma of losing their daughter Uzma who turned 18 this May, the family is coping with the news that one of the youngest acid attack victims, Samad who was seven-month-old when the incident took place, cannot be operated till he turns five, after the doctors told his mother Tarranum the same.
Unlike other children of his age, Samad cannot go out in the sun. His mother Tarranum, who too suffered burn injuries, till date never got the time to get herself properly treated as she was too tensed with Samad’s condition.
On the fateful, hot summer night of May 25, 2015, Uzma, along with her parents, sisters Nisha, Gulistan, Tarranum, her seven-month-old son Samad, were sleeping on their terrace in Meerut when Uzma’s husband, Sajid, his friends Majid and Rizwaan came with bottles of acid and flung them at the family of seven, said Tarranum.
Recalling the horror, Niksina, Uzma’s mother told Millennium Post, “ Within a year of their marriage, my son-in-law Sajid started beating Uzma over dowry. On May 23, Uzma came to our place to stay for a few days. Enraged over this, he threw acid on all of us. The attack destroyed our lives. Doctors told us that Uzma had lost both her eyes and had suffered serious injuries. Admitted in Apollo hospital, doctors told us that she died due to high BP and infection. After her death, we came back to Meerut.
My husband is a rickshaw puller and my 22-year-old son is a tempo driver. They manage to earn Rs 300-400 per day. But this is not sufficient. Tarranum is living with us with her son Samad who is now one-and-a-half-years old. This acid attack has changed our lives. Although police arrested Sajid and others, I am scared about my other daughter’s future for Sajid’s mother and sister are out waiting to take revenge,” said Niksina.