New Delhi: Eighteen members of a Hyderabad family, across three generations, were among 42 Indian pilgrims killed in a terrible bus accident near Madinah in Saudi Arabia in the early hours of Monday.
What is even more heart-wrenching is that 9 of the victims were children.
The family was returning from Umrah pilgrimage.
“My sister-in-law, brother-in-law, their son, three daughters and their children went (for Umrah). They left eight days ago. The Umrah was done, and they were returning to Madinah,” Mohammed Asif, a relative, told NDTV.
The family was in constant touch with people back home before tragedy struck. “Eighteen members of one family — nine adults and nine children — have died. It is a terrible tragedy for us,” Asif said.
Among the victims were Naseeruddin (70), his wife Akhter Begum (62), their son Salauddin (42), daughters Amina (44), Rizwana (38) and Shabana (40), along with their children.
The family residence, in central Hyderabad’s Ramnagar, turned into a mourning and grieving site.
“My brother’s entire family has been wiped out,” wailed one woman.
A bus carrying 46 passengers, travelling from Mecca to Madinah, collided with an oil tanker.
Just one passenger survived, bringing back memories of Ramesh Viswashkumar who had walked out of the Air India flight 171 which crashed seconds after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on June 12.
Monday’s mishap was one of the deadliest road accidents involving Indian pilgrims in recent years.
“The tragic bus accident involving Indian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia is deeply distressing. According to preliminary information, 46 people were travelling in the bus at the time of the incident, and heartbreakingly, only one person survived,” Hyderabad police commissioner VC Sajjanar said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy were among political leaders who offered condolences to the families.
Jaishankar said that the Indian embassy in Riyadh and the consulate in Jeddah were providing support to the relatives of the victims.
