SRINAGAR: In the quiet village of Naidkhai, Bandipora, sorrow hangs heavy as the family and community mourn the tragic loss of Abida, a young mother of three who died from injuries sustained in last Sunday’s grenade attack at Srinagar’s bustling weekly market. Abida, known as Sumaiya by her family, was visiting the market on November 3, to buy winter clothes for her children when an explosion changed her family’s world forever. After a critical struggle at SMHS hospital, she succumbed to her injuries, leaving behind a devastated family and a community in shock.
The single-storey home Abida shared with her children sits at the end of a narrow lane, filled now with the sound of quiet sobs and subdued conversations. Her three children—a six-year-old daughter, a seven-year-old son, and the youngest, a five-year-old boy—remain unaware of the magnitude of their loss. Shielded by family members, the children, too young to comprehend death, are puzzled by the constant flow of mourners to their home. “Why are so many people coming to our house?” the eldest child asked his uncle, who, struggling to keep his own composure, tried to soothe them.
As villagers gather to comfort the grieving family, the eldest child’s innocent words weigh heavily on everyone. “My mummy has gone to the Sunday market to buy clothes for me and my younger brother and sister,” he says with a hopeful smile. “She promised me a blue jacket and long boots for winter.” Women from the village embrace the children, hoping to offer some comfort amid the tearful silence, but the reality of Abida’s death has yet to reach the little ones’ hearts.
To spare the children from the sight of their mother’s body, relatives have kept them at a distance, hoping to protect them from immediate shock. “These kids are too small to understand the meaning of death,” one woman said, her voice breaking as she expressed the helpless grief felt by those around her.
(With KINS input)
