Chandan Kumar Mandal

Laxmi Sah’s daily routine revolved around his job and flat in Al Farwaniya, Kuwait. He did not have any issues with his co-workers or his flatmates.

“He was a hard-working man, who could work nonstop for 15-16 hours every day,” said Chhedi Lal Sah, his close friend and a flatmate. “Besides his regular job, he would also do part-time jobs whenever he got the opportunity to make some extra money.”

Sah, 49, was an employee of Al Shimasyah International General Trading and Contracting Company and had been lately posted as a cleaner at Kuwait International Airport.

“Since the pandemic began, he would be working from 3am till late hours of the night. There was no fixed schedule,” said Chhedi Lal, who had flown to Kuwait a day after Sah in 2012 and worked for the same company.

According to his friends in Kuwait, Sah was making a handsome income for a Nepali worker.

But on the night of November 19, Sah suddenly disappeared. His whereabouts remain unknown.

On the night of his disappearance, Sah had returned to his flat with three other friends at around 10pm, according to his friend Chhedi Lal, who was also in Kuwait at that time.

“He had returned to the flat, but left before I got back from work,” said Chedilal from his home in Saptari. “He had left without informing anyone.”

His flatmates thought Sah must have left to work part time, which usually was washing cars or loading cargo at the airport.

But he did not return till late and when he did not receive the calls, his flatmates became worried.

“Everyone started panicking when he did not return the calls. His phone was on till 6:02 am the next day,” said Chhedi Lal. “He had not even gone for his shift at the airport.”

More than two months after Sah’s disappearance, a small news report in Kuwaiti media alerted those close to him.

On January 26, Arab Times reported that Kuwaiti authorities had discovered skeletal remains in the desert of Abdali, around 115 km from Farwaniya, from where Sah had disappeared.

The paper, citing a vernacular daily, reported that the remains belonged to a Nepali national who had gone missing several months ago and that he had allegedly been murdered.

The identity of the skeletal remains has not been ascertained yet.

But back home in Nepal, some online news portals were quick to conclude that the remains were that of Sah.

Friends and family members, who were already distressed by his disappearance, were shocked and angered by the news.

“We don’t know where my father is and what condition he is in. Some media reports have already reported his death. How can they do that?” Bijendra Sah, his son, said. “Such reporting has only exacerbated our pain. All of us are devastated. There is no proof of his death yet unless his body is found.”

Last two months have been emotionally tough for the Sah family.

Before his disappearance, Sah used to talk regularly with his family members back home at Khamgada village of Bodebarsain Municipality in Saptari district. He also remained in touch with his son Bijendra, who works in a hospital in Patna, Bihar.

The day Sah disappeared his family was preparing for Chhath, the biggest festival of the Tarai region. He had called Bijendra that afternoon.

“He said that there was some commotion going on and hung up saying he would call later,” said Bijendra. “No one heard from him after that.”

After hearing the details of his last call, Sah’s friends in Kuwait and family members back home intensified the search for him. They thought the police could have arrested Sah during their raids as he was not legally allowed to work part time.

“We had heard that some 25-30 people had been arrested in a raid that night. The next day, it was Friday [a holiday], so we went out to look for him,” said Chhedi Lal, who returned to Nepal on January 13. “We approached his supervisor at his company but he did show much concern and told us to wait for a few days.”

Back home in Nepal, Sah’s family was ready to secure his release by paying a fine if he had been arrested by the police.

“We were in touch with a Bengali man, who had told us that he would find my father in exchange for money,” said Bijendra. “We were ready to pay him any amount. Later he said that he could not do so. I also approached the company where my father worked.”

According to Saroj Ray, a Nepali activist who has been involved in several campaigns to rescue migrant workers, Nepali media’s reporting of Sah’s “death” was equally tragic for the family.

“There is no proof that Sah is dead. This has not been officially confirmed until now,” said Ray. 

Ray said that he has also approached Sah’s company, but they have not heard from them

“Even the Nepali embassy officials told me he was not among the Nepalis who were arrested during the raids launched by the Kuwaiti authorities,” said Ray.

His friends in Kuwait had also approached the Nepali embassy and gone to a Kuwaiti jail to inquire about Sah’s situation, according to Chhedi Lal.

“We had thought that if he had been arrested, then he must be in one of the jails,” said Chhedi Lal. “Prison officials, however, refused our request and asked us to bring the employer. So we could not do much. Neither the company nor the local authorities have cared much.”

According to an official with the Nepal embassy in Kuwait, following the information from Sah’s friends that he could be in one of the jails, the embassy had asked the company's representative to look for him in prisons.

“Sah’s friends had said that he was kept at Khaitan Police Station. We had asked the company official to visit the police station,” said the official, who did not want to be named as he was not authorised to speak with the media. “But Sah was not there.”

Bijendra, Sah’s son, says they had also contacted the Nepal embassy in Kuwait.

“The embassy told me that an official was handling the case. It’s been 18 days since then but I have not heard anything from the embassy,” said Bijendra. “With not so encouraging response from the authorities, I am now planning to reach out to political party leaders who can build pressure to look for my father.”

Families and friends of Sah do not believe that the remains discovered in the desert were his.

“It’s been hardly two and a half months since he disappeared. It’s hard to believe that a body will decay down to the bones in such a short period of time,” said Chhedi Lal. “I am not there so I cannot say what is going on. Even my ex-coworkers have not seen any police reports on the identity of the person whose remains have been found.”

Bhagwat Sah, another coworker and flatmate of Sah, is also sceptical about the identity of the remains.

“The local police are investigating the case. Only they can confirm the identity of the remains,” Bhagwat, who is also Sah’s neighbour, told the Post from Kuwait over the phone. “He was an amiable person and never had any issues with anyone. We had returned from work together before he left for a part-time job on the day of his disappearance. I don’t know what happened to him.”

After the latest media reports, the Nepali embassy once again called the human resource manager of the company where Sah worked.

“We are waiting for the company’s response. The embassy has also intensified search for the missing person,” the official told the Post over the phone from Kuwait City on Sunday. 

Back in Saptari, Sah’s family is looking forward to his return—or at least for him to get in touch. They are also anxiously waiting for the forensic test report to ascertain the identity of the skeletal remains.

“We should not be thinking that something bad happened to him,” said Bijendra, who has returned home from his job in Patna to be with his family. “We cannot give up hope.”

Published on: 1 February 2021 | The Kathmandu Post