By Mohammad Ibrar
New Delhi: Samreen Ansari lost her home in the February 2020 riots in northeast Delhi and had to run away from Shiv Vihar and live in the Eidgah refugee camp. A bank employee, she also lost her job during the first lockdown. However, the trauma didn’t stop her from being a good Samaritan.
This 24-year-old is one of the many riot victims who are doing their bit to bring back communal amity by distributing rations to people in the same areas that were engulfed in violence last year.
“I returned home eight months ago. By then, the pandemic had spread across the country and many people were affected by the lockdown. Even I lost my job as a bank representative. Despite this, I wanted to help people and bridge the communal divide,” said Samreen, who currently works with Movement for Education and Empowerment for Masses (MEEM) Foundation that provides rations, medicines and even mental health assistance to people in northeast Delhi and adjoining areas. Ansari added, “I was unemployed for almost a year. Since I had faced so many problems, I decided to speak to everyone affected by the riots and the pandemic. After creating a list, we started offering relief to people.”
Another resident of northeast Delhi, Mohammad Anees, saw houses in his lane in Khajuri Khas getting gutted during the riots. “Thankfully, our house was spared. Despite having financial troubles, I wanted to be of some help to people and also mend communal ties that were destroyed by the riots,” he said.
A finance consultant, Anees has helped many unemployed people. “One family lost their shop during the riots, so I helped them get a fruit and vegetable cart to earn a living. We are helping everyone. With our small effort of providing rations and other relief, we are doing our bit to bring about a change.”
The founder and president of MEEM, Syed Farman, said, “Our organisation has been working since 2014. We have provided relief and supported the education of people who belong to the marginal sections of society. Our members in northeast Delhi are doing stellar work despite being affected by the riots themselves.”
