26 December 2024

Waliullah Marouf Hamida Banu sits on a sharpoi in blue and white clothes. She is sitting in a large gray courtyard, wrapped in a shawl.God is known

Hamida Bano at her residence in Karachi in 2022

An Indian woman who says she was trafficked to Pakistan more than two decades ago has finally returned to her homeland – 18 months after her grandson spotted her in a YouTube video.

Hamida Bano said she has spent the past 22 years “as a living corpse,” trapped in the neighboring country and unable to contact her family.

Ms Bano was tricked into going to Pakistan after accepting what was supposed to be a job in Dubai in 2002.

Both India and Pakistan – which have frosty bilateral relations – conducted extensive identity checks before confirming her Indian citizenship in October.

“I was deceptively taken to Pakistan by promising Dubai. I have endured (separation) for 23 years,” the 75-year-old told reporters after crossing into India at the land border.

In 2002, Mrs. Bano supported her four children financially after her husband's death by working as a chef in Qatar, Dubai and Saudi Arabia.

The recruitment agent called her and said she could help arrange a job in Dubai. The agent asked her to pay 20,000 rupees ($250; £200).

But, as Ms. Bano recalled in her 2022 video interview, instead of Dubai, she was brought to the city of Hyderabad in Pakistan and detained in a house for three months.

She later married a street vendor in Karachi, who died during the COVID-19 pandemic. She told BBC Punjabi that her husband never bothered her.

Her story made headlines in July 2022 after Indian journalist Khalfan Sheikh watched a YouTube interview conducted by Pakistani social media activist Waliullah Marouf and shared it on his platform.

Aman Sheikh Passport photo of Hamida Banu wearing a white scarf.Aman Sheikh

Ms. Bano said she was happy to be back with her children and siblings

The letter reached Ms. Bano's family in India when her grandson, whom she had never met before, saw it.

Mr Sheikh and Mr Marouf then arranged a call between Ms Bano and her Indian family.

“How are you? Do you recognize me? Where have you been all these years?” Ms. Bano's daughter, Yasmin, was seen asking in the video call.

“Don't ask me where I've been and how I've been. I've missed you all so much. I didn't stay here willingly, and I had no other choice,” Mrs. Bano replied.

After arriving in India on Monday, Ms Pannu recalled the 2022 video that helped her connect with her family years later.

“My video was shared two years ago. I wasn't sure if I would make it to India,” she said. “But the Indian embassy called me a year ago saying you can come back.”

Speaking to BBC Punjabi, Ms Bano said she was happy to be back with her children and siblings. “I have brothers, sisters and children there (in India), but I don’t want to be a burden on anyone.”

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