Lured with lucrative jobs in Qatar, the brothers are stuck tending to 400 camels in blazing temperatures in Saudi desert without remuneration or even adequate food and water

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IN yet another instance of youngsters' Gulf dreams turning into a nightmare, two young men from Mohammad Ali Road, who were promised lucrative jobs in Qatar, now find themselves enslaved in Saudi Arabia.
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The brothers take care of camels in the blazing heat of the desert without any remuneration or even adequate food and water. Their attempts at escape and their family's efforts to get them back have proved futile.



Anis Palekar (28) and his younger brother Habib (25) spoke to their uncle Iqbal Murudkar, who runs a business in Dubai, on Monday and said they were assaulted by their kafil (employer), Ali Saleh Al Marri, as he was upset over attempts being made to secure their freedom.

"We are worried that the kafil might kill the boys. He had threatened he would not release the boys until they complete two years and that and that they would not be paid," said Iqbal, who is currently in the city.

According to Iqbal, Anis and Habib left for Qatar in the first week of July after Marri promised them jobs as a driver and a housekeeper.

However, within four days of reaching there, Marri took them to Saudi Arabia on the pretext of getting them a better job. He told them they would come back to Qatar after working for six months in a garden there.

However, on reaching Saudi Arabia, the brothers were taken deep into the desert andu00a0 made to take care of 400-odd camels at a camel farm. Their job included grazing the animals in temperatures of 45 to 50 degree Celsius and walking hundreds of kilometres in the desert with insufficient water and food.

On October 15, the brothers informed their family in India that Marri was shifting all 400 camels with belongings and vehicles from the east of the country to the west and that they had been made to travel on foot for a week. While they slept on the sand at night, Marri and his family stayed in an air-conditioned trailer.

Escape attempt

"The boys made an attempt to escape, but were caught and thrashed. On December 23, they asked Marri to take Anis for treatment as he was unwell but were refused medical assistance.
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That night, the boys escaped and started walking in the desert. They made it to a small village called Al-Ahad where they were spotted by some Arabs, thrashed, and sent back to Marri," said Iqbal.

"The boys' six-month visa has not been renewed and the Saudi Immigration officials aren't too strict with Qatari Arab camel farm owners. The Saudi government, too, offers these people incentives to stay and run their farms in the country," he added.

"I forwarded a request to the President and Prime Minister of India, the Indian embassy in Doha, the Qatari Ambassador and the Saudi Arabian embassy in India and the Interior Minister of Qatar. I also wrote to the foreign and interior Ministers of Saudi Arabia and Human Rights Organisations.
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The PMO replied saying that the appeal had been forwarded to the Qatari and Saudi Arabian embassies for immediate repatriation of my sons, but I am yet to make any headway," said Anis and Habib's mother Najma Palekar.

The family has now written to the Maharashtra Rajya Vidhi Seva Samiti of the Bombay High Court for assistance and is hoping for justice from the court.u00a0
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1.6 million
Number of Indian expatriates in Saudi Arabia

Not Alone
In January last year, an Indian worker, Habib Hussein escaped Saudi Arabia after months of abuse. At first, he was forced to graze goats during the day and work as a cleaner at an airport during the night. He worked for 14-18 hours per day without receiving any money.

Afterward, Hussein was sold, along with other Indian workers to a sponsorship agent in Medina. There he worked for over 15 hours per day. Unable to exit the country legally, Hussein hid in the bathroom of an Air India flight and was able to return home.