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video, that later went viral on social media, shows a young man reuniting with his family after almost three decades. Muhammad Asif, aged 32, was kidnapped from near the Bari Imam shrine in the city, at the age of two. In a miraculous turn of events, his long separation from his family has finally come to an end.
The video shows his parents hugging him and crying. The rights activist Waliullah Ma’roof is seen introducing him to his mother, father and other family members. Ma’roof, say locals, played a pivotal role in tracing the family of the abducted boy.
Asif, whose family had called him Muhammad Siddique, was given a new name by his kidnapper, a women who picked him from Islamabad and later took him to a village in Sargodha district, where, according to Asif, some other abducted children were also kept.
Ma’roof frequently posts videos of cases pertaining to missing persons on social media in hope of reuniting families with their loved ones. This was how he was able to find Asif’s family and arrange a meeting. “The videos help a lot. In this way, I have been able to reunite several missing persons with their families,” says Ma’roof.
Ma’roof, originally from Manghopir, Karachi, says he first became interested in reuniting missing people with their families when he met Zahida, an elderly Bangladeshi woman who lived in his neighborhood and had been a victim of human trafficking. She had been kidnapped from Bangladesh 35 years ago and sold in Karachi.
Asif, whose family called him Muhammad Siddique, was given a new name by his kidnapper, a women who had picked him from Islamabad and taken him to a village in Sargodha district, where, according to Asif, some other abducted children were also kept.
“I am grateful to God for my son’s return to me,” says Asif’s elderly mother.
In an interview, Asif said that he had been aware that he had been abducted. “We felt abandoned and frequently heard from others that we had been kidnapped,” Asif said.
He eventually escaped the area at the age of around ten and was taken in by a kind lawyer and his family who not only raised him but also ensured that he got a decent education. After some years in school, however, he opted to for skilled work and became an electrician. He is married and has bought a small house from his savings.
Asif says he had always wanted to be reunited with his parents. Recently, he met someone at a goldsmith’s shop and mentioned his wish to find his parents. The goldsmith introduced him to Ma’roof, who ultimately succeeded in tracing his family.
The author is a staff reporter. He can be reached at vaqargillanigmail.com