KATHMANDU, Sept 12: For the past few years, 62 years old Yam Kumari Bhusal of Nawalparasi, Madhyebindu-4, has hardly slept at nights. Seven years ago, her son had fled to Saudi Arabia in search of a job. Before leaving, he had told his mother that the days of sorrow will soon be over.
Yam Kumari was on cloud nine until recently when she was informed that her son had been jailed in a foreign land after failing to post the blood money.
Her son Sthaneshwar who had moved to a Gulf country holding big dreams had never imagined that he will get stuck in such a problem. Now, his family does not expect him to send money. Instead, they keep praying for his safe return. His family had managed Rs. 200,000 for him but had not expected that he will be in such a trouble.
Sthaneshwar is serving a jail term since the vehicle he was driving ran over a person and killed him. Reportedly, a truck had hit his vehicle from the behind due to which the mishap occurred. He had not even spent his ten months In Saudi Arabia when the accident took place. His family was informed only later. He lived outside until the verdict of the court, but later was moved to the Jeddah-based Dhaban prison. It has been four years since he has been serving a jail term.
Sthaneshwar had sought help from Innovative Manpower to go broad. His employer in Saudi Arabia had instructed him to drive vehicles promising him to provide license in a matter of days. But before he could get his license, he met with the accident. As per the information provided to the family members by the Jeddah-based Nepali authorities, after declaring his crime, the court has ordered Sthaneshwar to pay a compensation of Rs 4.5 million.
The court has also ordered that the culprit will be slapped with life imprisonment if he can't pay the blood money. Yam Kumari spends her days shedding tears for her son. "He was the only person who used to earn for the family," she said, adding, "We can't think of releasing him from jail paying such a large amount when we are still struggling to clear the loan that we had taken to send him abroad."
She fears that she might have to lose her son forever if she failed to pay the blood money.