Geeta, the deaf and mute girl, who returned to India last October after being stranded in Pakistan for 13 years, on Saturday expressed sorrow over the demise of Pakistani philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi.
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The Foreign Ministry of Pakistan has not issued a condolence message on late Abdul Sattar Edhi’s death, 24 News reported. However, he expressed hope that the Edhi family will continue the great humanitarian’ mission. The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, after spending seven weeks in London following a heart by-pass, was on his way back to Lahore, and did not attend.
Edhi’s most iconic work is an empty cradle that rests outside the charity’s headquarters, where unwanted children can be anonymously handed over to the foundation’s orphanages.
Edhi’s son Qutab Meer could not attend the funeral as he is overseas, his son Faisal said, adding that Meer could not reach on time. “Attending his funeral is the least we could do to pay our tributes”, shopkeeper Siraj Ahmed, 34, said outside the stadium where the army fired a 19-gun salute to mark Edhi’s death.
A state funeral will be held for Edhi, the first to take place in the country in 28 years.
Edhi had been hospitalised for several weeks and his family said he had been suffering from kidney failure.
Edhi, who had dedicated his life to humanity and serving the poor, was widely respected in Pakistan due to his humanitarian and social welfare works. The Foundation named her Geeta and allowed her to follow the Hindu religion, as per her wish.
In June, he reportedly declined an offer from former president Asif Ali Zardari for treatment overseas, saying he would only be treated in a government hospital in Pakistan. “He also wanted to donate his body parts, but only his cornea can be donated as rest of the organs were not in healthy condition”, said Faisal Edhi.
Despite constant threats, the Edhi Foundation “became Pakistan’s most relied upon social safety net, handling numerous responsibilities that the Pakistani government could not, or would not, tackle”, Al Jazeera’s Brandice Alexander reported.
The Edhi Trust is famous throughout Pakistan, encompassing rehabilitation centers, psychiatric clinics and refugee shelters.
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He came from humble origins and remained a quiet and modest man all his life.
