Injured victim of Karsaz accident still in critical state

A man injured due to reckless driving at Karsaz on Monday is still in a critical state as his treatment continues at a private hospital in Karachi. Abdus Salam, 60, son of Ishaq, was seriously injured after a speedy jeep driven by a female driver hit him on Karsaz Road. A man, Imran Arif, and his daughter Amina were also killed in the accident.

Salam’s family said that after the accident, he was initially shifted to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) but he lay helpless there for over eight hours writhing in pain with no one looking after him.

They said they had several heated exchanges with doctors at the JPMC, following which they moved him to a private hospital.

The family alleged that instead of tending to the injured man, the hospital administration was busy in taking care of the female driver who had also been shifted there following her arrest.

Salam is currently in a critical condition fighting for his life at a hospital situated near the Hill Park. The family said no representative from any government institution had contacted them so far.

Naeem Ahmed, Salam’s brother, told The News that his brother's condition was not good. He added that doctors had shifted him onto a ventilator and told the family that the situation would become clear on Sunday morning.

He mentioned that due to the accident, his brother's liver had been damaged and a surgery had to be performed, however, it was still uncertain whether the liver was healing properly or not. "If it hasn't healed properly, another surgery will be required, which will be even more risky."

He lamented that they did not have much financial resources and the reason they had Salam shifted to a private hospital was that he was not taken care of at the JPMC. The brother said they had already spent Rs400,000 on Salam’s treatment, and they had no idea how much more would be needed.

He maintained that since the day of the accident, no government representative, police official or family member of the woman responsible for the accident had contacted them.

"My brother is a book supplier who was on his routine supply when this accident occurred," he explained, adding that Salam lived in Korangi and was the father of four children. Meanwhile, Prof Imtiaz Arif, the brother of the man who was killed in the accident and the complainant of the case against the female driver, held a protest in front of the Karachi Press Club and criticised the police for not adding the Section 314 pertaining to Qisas to the case.

He stated that the offers of blood money were meaningless to them. "We are striving to ensure that no Amina is ever run over by the car of a wealthy woman again."