A Saudi court has sentenced Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, native to death for his role in drug trafficking. Panic has gripped the family, who is now crying for mercy.
Meerut Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Vipin Tada said that a letter in this regard was received from the Indian consulate in Saudi Arabia through the district administration. The letter stated that Zaid Junaid, a resident of Rachauti village under the Mundali police station, was sentenced to death by a court in Mecca for drug smuggling. The family has been told about the possibility of preparing a mercy plea.
A notice was also posted in the entrance of their house so that the family members may know the situation. Zubair and Rehana, who were Zaid’s parents, are very grieved by this incident.
The elder brother of Zaid, Suhail, said that the father has already requested the Indian government to formally plead for mercy in front of Saudi authorities. The application was done yesterday. Zaid is about 35 years old and happens to be the second to his seven brothers. He went to Saudi Arabia in 2018 to work as a driver. He initially worked at one firm but later he joined Al-Zafar Company.
He’s troubles started when his car was stolen, but, to his surprise, this was soon recovered by the Saudi police three days after. Later on, in an accident while driving, he damaged the vehicle, and subsequently, the employer sued him to recover his expenditures. Not bearing the cost stress, Zaid resigned from that company and joined a police officer of Saudi as his driver.
However, after only three months in his job, Zaid was accused of being a part of the drug smuggling case when 700 grams of narcotics allegedly were found in the car he was driving. On January 15, 2023, he was arrested and has been sitting in Jeddah Central Jail.
Suhail said he believes his brother was only doing his job working as a driver while Zaid believes his brother was framed. “We hope the Indian government intervenes and saves his life,” he said. Zubair, Zaid’s father, lamented the family’s predicament, saying, “We’ve never faced such trouble before. All we want now is for Zaid to return alive.” Another elder brother, Naeem Khan Faisal, who also works as a driver in Saudi Arabia, is coordinating efforts with the family to seek his release.
