3 dead & counting, a wedding which didn’t happen: UP’s Bulandshahr bears brunt of Delhi riots

Meerut: They had left the dusty tracks of UP’s Bulandshahr in hope of a better life in Delhi. They were doing well, till the communal violence cut their lives short. Now their bodies are arriving, one after another. So far, three persons from the district have been confirmed killed in the national capital.

Ashfaq Hussain (22), an electrician who got married just 10 days ago, was killed when he went out for work. Shahid Khan (25), an auto-rickshaw driver, was returning home after dropping a passenger when he was shot dead. Shaban Aziz, 22, a labourer, was the third causality from Bulandshahr. He lived with his family in Delhi’s Gokulpuri area.

So far, 38 people have been declared dead in Delhi’s communal clash.

The violence not only sent bodies back home, it also crushed some dreams. A wedding was postponed at the last moment in Bulandshahr’s Sikandarabad area on Tuesday. The ‘baarat’ was to come from Mustafabad-- one of the epicentres of riots that broke out in the national capital.

Nagina, 22, was set to marry a man from Mustafabad area of Delhi. She is distraught now. Due to the tense situation in riot-hit area, the baarat didn’t turn up.

“Nagina and her younger sister Rani were getting married on the same day. While Rani got married to a man from Okhla in Delhi, her elder sister’s wedding was temporarily postponed after ‘baarat’ didn’t arrive,” says Jameel Malik, uncle of the sisters.

“The preparation for the feast and other arrangements were made, but the ‘baarat’ didn’t arrive due to tension in Mustafabad. I hope the normalcy is restored soon,” said Yameen Malik, father of the bride.