Families of the three men who travelled to India in January say they have not heard from them in weeks and are worried about their wellbeing.
The men from Vanua Levu travelled to India for Tablighi Jamaat, an Islamic religious event.
The wife of one of the men confirmed that her husband called two weeks ago and said he had tested positive for COVID-19 and was kept in isolation at a New Delhi hospital.
“I am worried in case something happens to him,” the woman who preferred to remain unnamed said.
The second man, Mohammed Sameer Hussein, 25, last spoke to his sister in January. His youngest sister, Nisha Fatima, said she was missing her brother tremendously and hoped arrangements could be made to repatriate him.
“I am worried sick and we are praying and fasting that God will bring him safely back home,” she said.
Meanwhile, the brother of the third man, Sahadat Khan, said his family was worried about his welfare.
“We are asking those in power to assist us get our family members back because we are worried about them even though they tell us they are well,” Saheed Khan said.
“India is very foreign and very far away.”
India went into 21 days of national lockdown on March 24 — 54 days after the country’s first case was confirmed.
The three-week lockdown was extended for a further three weeks ending on May 3.
(Editor’s note: This article was published in The Fiji Times on Wednesday, April 23, 2020)
