JEDDAH, 14 March 2006 — Rizwan Abdul Nabi has been defying the odds and appears to be set to win a court case against his sponsor, Khaled Al-Abbass Al-Telmesani.

Both sponsor and laborer have been locked in a court battle over unpaid wages. This case has left Abdul Nabi exhausted and without work, salary or shelter for nearly two years.

Shuffled numerous times between the labor courts of Alkhobar and Dammam, and the Appellate Court in Riyadh, Abdul Nabi had long ago decided to see the lengthy judicial process all the way through to the end, refusing to give up on what is owed him, not wanting to return to India empty-handed.

The long-standing dispute began in late 2004, when Abdul Nabi had gone eight months without being paid. He won his case against his sponsor in the Labor Court. The judge ordered that Al-Telmesani pay SR12,008 and provide Abdul Nabi with an exit-visa and air ticket back to India.

Displeased with the judge’s decision, Al-Telmesani filed an appeal in the Riyadh Appellate Court, knowing that the process would take at least a year and that Abdul Nabi would have to remain in the Kingdom for the duration.

“My sponsor is trying to break me. He had assumed that I would tire of the bureaucracy and just give up on my money and go home. He even had me sign a letter of no-claim promising that he would pay me when my visa was processed, but I was never paid. Now he is using the no-claim letter against me in court saying that I have been paid. If I had been paid and the Labor Court judge’s order been followed, then why am I still in Saudi Arabia broke and homeless?” Abdul Nabi asked Arab News.

In a surprising turn of events last week, the Appellate Court judge presiding over the case decided that the no-claim letter was not proof enough that Abdul Nabi had been paid and again asked for other substantiating evidence.

“The judge seemed to understand that I had been tricked into signing the letter and he seemed very angry with Al-Telmesani and his attorney for delaying the proceedings for so long by either not showing up to court when ordered or by showing up without the requested proof of payment,” Abdul Nabi said. “What really surprised me was when the judge began looking into how many months I have been forced to remain in Saudi Arabia because of this dispute, and indicated that I should be paid for all the months I spent fighting Al-Telmesani in court.”

Abdul Nabi is scheduled to return to court on May 23, at which time he hopes the judge rules in his favor, this time ordering not only the SR12,008 be paid, but thousands more to compensate him for the time spent during the entire judicial process.

“If that happens, I hope to return to India immediately to take care of my father who is ill, and to get married,” Abdul Nabi said.