A woman smuggled from Bangladesh to Pakistan decades ago has appealed to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to intervene and help her reunite with her family after remaining separated for nearly 40 years.
Razia Bibi, who currently lives in a village near Pattoki, said the pain of being away from her mother and siblings had defined her entire life.
“No one can replace a mother or a sister. A mother is everything,” she said while speaking to Geo News, breaking down while recalling her long wait to see her family.
Making a direct appeal to Punjab CM Maryam, she said she only wished to meet her elderly and ailing mother so that her heart could finally find peace.
According to the report, Razia was born in Bangladesh and was brought to Karachi through India before eventually being taken to Pattoki.
She said her mother is now old and unwell, and that she fears she may not get another chance to see her. “Who knows how much longer she has? I want to meet her while she is still alive,” Razia said.
Her suffering intensified recently when she was offloaded by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) immigration authorities while attempting to travel back to Bangladesh, despite having what she said were complete and valid travel documents.
“I made my passport, obtained the visa and bought my ticket, but when I reached the airport, I was offloaded,” she said.
Recounting her ordeal, Razia said that at the age of 18, a co-worker at a factory deceived her and smuggled her to Karachi through India under the pretext of buying gold. She was later taken to Pattoki, where a man purchased her for Rs5,000 for his disabled son and arranged her marriage.
“He brought me here through deception. We crossed into India first, then came straight to Karachi, where I was sold and married off,” she said.
Razia described her married life as extremely difficult, saying that not a single day passed without her praying to be reunited with her parents and siblings. “I never asked God for wealth. I only asked to be reunited with my family,” she said.
A breakthrough came two years ago when a local pharmacist in the area helped trace her family using an old address she still remembered. The pharmacist said that contact was made with a person in Bangladesh and, after locating her relatives, a video call was arranged between Razia and her family.
After the death of her husband and the marriage of her only daughter, Razia’s desire to return to her family intensified further. She said four decades had passed in hardship and that she raised goats and chickens and sold them to save money for her travel.
Her case is now being pursued by lawyer Ali Changezi Sandhu, who is representing her without charge. He said the High Court had directed the FIA director to decide the matter on merit within 15 days.
The lawyer stated that Razia had a return ticket, a valid passport and a valid visa, and that all her documents were genuine. He described it as devastating that a 60-year-old woman, who had not seen her mother for 40 to 50 years, was offloaded despite fulfilling all legal requirements.
He added that Razia had suffered a financial loss of around Rs300,000 to Rs350,000, which, he said, should be compensated by the FIA or the Ministry of Interior.
Razia said she believes the Punjab chief minister would understand her pain as a mother and help her reunite with her elderly parent.
“Maryam Nawaz is a mother, just like my own. If my mother dies before I can see her, I will die of grief,” she said.
Relatives of Razia have also appealed to the authorities to take notice of her case and help bring an end to her decades-long suffering.
