On May 21, 48-year-old Zulfikar, a native of village Kappur, district Palakkad, Kerala, died in Karachi jail. He was arrested by the Pakistani Coast Guard for illegally entering Pakistani waters. Reportedly, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) found his links to the Islamic terrorist organisation ISIS. He was living in UAE for several years and in 2018 he was in Abu Dhabi. He died in a Karachi hospital due to a lung-related ailment.
His family disowned him but will receive his body
As per reports, his wife and two children were living with him in UAE. However, his wife left him after learning about his connections to ISIS and came back to India. His parents and siblings also disowned him over links to the Islamic terrorist organisation.
However, after learning about his death, his family said they would receive his body if it is delivered to their home state. His father Abdul Hameed said it would not be possible for him to receive his body from Chandigarh Airport but would receive it if the government arrange transport to the home state. Zulfikar’s dead body will be handed over to Indian authorities by Pakistan at Attari-Wagha Border.
In a statement, his father said, “An inspector, who is an acquaintance of mine, works at the Special Branch. He called me to ask if we have any information about Zulfikar and I said no. He then claimed that somebody told him Zulfikar has returned. After some time, my son (Zulfikar’s brother) told me that he passed away.”
Zlfikar’s cousin was quoted by The News Minute as saying that they did not have any problem in collecting Zulfikar’s body. However, if his links with the terrorist organisation were proven, they would not have collected it. Zulfikar did not visit Palakkad since 2018.
As per reports, the Union Home Ministry has directed the Additional Chief Secretary of the Kerala Home Department to ensure the dead body is handed over to the relatives.
The links between Kerala natives with ISIS are making headlines for weeks because of the film The Kerala Story. The movie revolves around the lives of Hindu women who were lured to convert by Muslim men and then later sent to join the terrorist organisation ISIS. The film, which is inspired by real-life stories, has faced backlash from Islamists, communists, and liberals.