Pulwama: On August 22, when militants killed Police Constable Muhammad Yaqoob Shah, 35, outside his house in Lusiwana village of Pulwama, uncertainty fell on the future of his young nieces and nephews, whose education he sponsored.
Shah was posted at the District Police Lines, Pulwama, and was visiting his ailing mother the day he was shot dead.
He was the prime earning in the 12-member poverty-stricken family, which included his mother, three brothers and their seven children.
More than a month after his death, the future of his nieces and nephews is uncertain. They don’t know whether they will be able to pursue their education.
Rabia Shah, 18, a Class XII student, her sister Sania Shah (Class IX) and brother Yawar (Class VIII) are distraught.
“Education for us was almost impossible because my father is a labourer. He cannot afford it. But my uncle had taken it upon himself to educate us. He always dreamt of us doing something in life,” says Rabia, as she consoles her grandmother who is yet to recover from the shock.
Rabia studies at Higher Secondary School in Newa, Pulwama. She says her uncle, who was the only government employee in the family, supported the education of all children in the family.
“He would buy us books, pens and pay for everything. The day he was killed, we had asked him for money as a gift. He gave us money every time he visited home,” she says.
“He had promised that he would make us doctors and engineers, but now we are unsure of our studies,” says Rabia.
Shah was killed by militants when he was visiting home on Eid. (Tribune)
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