SRINAGAR: The wife of Kashmiri doctor Rouf Jeelani, a dentist, has died in a hospital in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, days after he made an emotional public appeal for urgent assistance to airlift her to Srinagar for advanced medical treatment.
She had been admitted to a hospital in Mecca in critical condition after complaining of cough while performing Umrah. Later, she was diagnosed with pneumonia. After undergoing treatment for a few days in ICU, she was shifted to another hospital. However, she suffered a brain stroke and developed complications. She was on ventilator support, according to a video posted by Dr Jeelani.
Dr Jeelani had earlier shared multiple video messages on social media, urging authorities to intervene and facilitate her immediate air evacuation to Srinagar. In his appeal, he had sought the intervention of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, requesting them to take up the matter with the Union Ministry of External Affairs.
“I am facing the worst situation of my life. I request the authorities and kind-hearted people to help me bring my ailing wife back to Srinagar,” Dr Jeelani had said in one of the videos.
He had stated that doctors treating his wife in Mecca had informed him that her recovery could take several months or even up to a year, given the severity of the stroke and related complications.
Family members and friends had also appealed to the authorities for urgent help, stressing the critical nature of her condition and the need for specialised treatment closer to home.
However, despite the appeals, her condition deteriorated, and she passed away during treatment in Mecca, sources said.
