Kolkata: The celebration day turns into a day of sharing anxiety, worries, and information about relatives who return home for around two dozen Afghanistan, who gathered at the park circus address on Thursday – Afghan independence day.
For Denmark Khan, MD Apostle, Amir Khan and MD Aisham, it was always about meeting friends and acquaintances in Kolkata and celebrated the event with Grand Daawat (party) with Afghan food and music.
But this year, there is no pleasure or food celebration and as a group of Afghans gathered at the address of Lane Karim Hussain in Park Circus and discussed the fate of the country and the future of their uncertain relatives.
“My children, wife and parents are trapped in Kabul.
I last talked to them on August 15 morning and then at night.
We found out that Kabul was taken over by the Taliban troops.
Since then I tried to contact my family there but a call Not connected.
I am very worried about them.
I came here mostly to find out how other people managed to contact their family members and if they had further information than what was available in the media, “said Akhmat Khan, who lives in a rented house in Bhowanipore and sell clothes.
Afghanistan has gathered at Yasmin Nigar Khan’s house, the grandson of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, known as Frontier Gandhi.
This place is also an office of all Indian Pakhtoon Jirga-e-Hind (a Pakhtoons or Pathans organization in India), led by Yasmin.
This clothing was formed by Frontier Gandhi who was adopted by Grandson Lala Jaan Khan in 1949 and Yasmin became his head in 1996.
Afghan’s independence day commemorated the 1919 agreement which ended the British government in the Central Asian country.
“Even though my close family with me, I was worried about relatives and my family members who were trapped in Kabul and other provinces in Afghanistan.
Communication began to deteriorate since the first week of July and now even telephone connectivity and internet services there.
I’m worried about my relatives And so was the others, who attended the meeting on Thursday, “Ahmed Khan said, another Afghan citizen who traded in fruits and dry clothes in Kolkata.
According to participants, the previous day was a special event in previous years when they celebrated together.
“Two ordinary people eat from one plate,” he recalled one of the participants when opening the Afghan flag he brought from his house.
On Thursday, the men sang Afghan’s national anthem and then sang the slogan “Afghanistan Zindabad” and “Hindusthan Zindabad”.