RIYADH, 27 April 2005 — The Indian Embassy (Labor Welfare Section) has submitted to the Saudi government a petition seeking clemency for an Indian national. He has been languishing in jail and will only be released if he pays up SR450,000 in diya (blood money) for the deaths of seven members of a Saudi family in a bizarre car accident nearly three years ago.
The petition was submitted after the embassy received a letter from the district collector of Calicut in north Kerala confirming that Kumar, an Indian expatriate working in the Kingdom, comes from a poor family and has no material assets to his credit, V.V. Narayanan, first secretary (labor welfare) at the Indian Embassy, told Arab News.
The petition says that Kumar was driving on the Jeddah-Riyadh highway in Ramadan in 2002 when his car was rammed from behind by a speeding GMC truck. The impact of the collision caused Kumar’s car to skid off the highway, while the GMC van rolled over several times. Seven members of the Saudi family, including their Indonesian maid, lost their lives.
Kumar, his wife Mini, sons Mithun and Nipun, students of eighth and fourth standards respectively at the International Indian School, Riyadh, were admitted to hospital nearby for treatment of injuries. At this stage the police picked up Kumar from the hospital and put him behind bars in Afif Jail. He was later transferred to the Malaz Prison where he has been in jail ever since.
Narayanan said in the midst of this tragedy the Indian family has also experienced great compassion of some Saudis, especially the gesture on the part of their landlord to forego rent for nearly three years. Another Saudi has pitched in with an offer to bail out Kumar and have him under his sponsorship.
Mini said she was overwhelmed by their humanitarian gestures, but feels the weight of their kindness. Mini’s brother, Sunny, also rose to the occasion by getting Thoolika, a cultural organization from Kerala, to launch a fund-raising drive. The initiative netted SR5,000. Meanwhile, Mini’s relatives and friends pooled their resources to raise additional funds bringing the total collection to SR38,000.
Part of the amount, however, was utilized for the renewal of Kumar’s Iqama and payment of other charges toward the change of sponsorship. This has cleared the decks for the new sponsor to secure Kumar’s release on bail. However, his effort has not yet borne fruit and Kumar remains in prison.
