Delhi Hotel Fire
Sohag's Daughter: 'Abbu Called and Told Me to Take Care of My Sister'
Agamir Somoy File Photo.
"On the day he left, I spoke with Abbu on phone and he had already boarded the plane. He asked me what he should bring for me. I said I'd think about it and let him know. He told me to send a WhatsApp message listing what I needed, and he would bring those." This was the last conversation third-grader Arifa had with her father, Nurul Amin Sohag. They never spoke again. And they never will. On June 3rd, Sohag, from Chattogram, died in a fire at the Florish Stay B Hotel in Delhi, India. The day before, on June 2nd, Sohag and five others had arrived in India for the treatment of his sister's husband, Mosharraf.
At least 21 people, including Sohag, have died so far in that fire. Sohag's sister, Rehena Akhtar Munni; his sister's husband, Mosharraf Hossain; and the other four are seriously injured and undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi. The other two are Mosharraf's cousin, Umme Johra, and her daughter, Umme Sayra. The group had gone to Delhi for Mosharraf's kidney transplant. Johra was the donor.
Sohag was a businessman and father of two daughters and one son. He had accompanied his sister's husband to help oversee his medical treatment. He is returning today, Saturday, as a body. His body is expected to arrive in Chattogram tonight. Their ancestral home is in Chauddagram, Comilla. However, they have been living permanently in the Barokoira Quarter area since childhood.
Several mourning banners featuring Sohag's picture have been placed at the entrance of their own building in the Lakeview Residential Area. There is only sorrow on people's faces. Ali Akbar, the building's caretaker, wipes his eyes as he tries to speak. Relatives and neighbors are crowding Sohag's third-floor apartment.
His elderly father, Abdul Sobahan, sits on a sofa in the drawing-room. Sohag was the second among his four sons and four daughters. Seeing two relatives, Sobahan cries out, "Why did Allah destroy my happy family?"
He pauses. Two people try to comfort him. The old man tries again to speak, "When my son was leaving, he said, 'Abba, pray for me." Then he breaks down sobbing. Hearing her father cry, a daughter runs out from inside. Relatives forbid talking about these matters.
Sitting nearby, another brother-in-law, Kabir Ahmed Bachchu, opened his phone and showed a video of Sohag's lifeless body after the accident. "This disaster has brought devastation upon our entire family. Sohag's sister Munni and Mosharraf are in critical condition. We appeal to both governments to arrange better medical treatment for them."
After the accident, three more relatives were sent to Delhi to care for the injured. Upon hearing the news, the youngest brother, Nurun Nabi Babu, rushed over from Australia. The elder brother, Nurul Kabir Miron, has come from Ireland. Another younger brother, Anwarul Haque Limon, is checking on his parents, nephews, and nieces from Portugal.
On Friday, Sohag's parents were informed of the tragic news. His mother, Rokeya Begum, is bedridden with grief. Sohag's wife, Farzana Ferdous, is speechless. Their eldest son, Ifazul Amin Araf, has gone completely silent. The 12-year-old boy is in fourth grade.
Arifa, 10, came and sat beside her grandfather in the drawing-room. In her lap is her five-month-old baby sister, Ayesha. Arifa never sent her father the list of things she wanted, and now she never will. Arifa says, "Abbu called and told me to take care of my little sister."
Hearing his granddaughter say this, elderly Abdul Sobahan wept once more. Everyone sat in silence. Arifa knows her father is gone. But can she truly comprehend what she has lost? As for baby Ayesha in her arms, she will never be able to remember her father's face.
