Mumbai man back 31 years after losing passport, memory in Dubai

Jai Singh in white and his brother Bhagat at their home after the reunion Pic Sameer MarkandeSixtysevenyearold Jai Singhs life is straight out of a Bollywood movie The Mira Road East resident who had gone to Dubai at the age of 36 in 1986 for a job returned home to his family only last night 31 years later Singh had lost his job and his passport in the Gulf country and with it his memory gradually and was even jailed in a case Rescued by the Consulate General of India in Dubai it took the authorities two months to put the pieces together after learning about him to track down his family Thats because Singh only knew Marathi and a smattering of ArabicHis 69yearold brother Bhagat waited for 12 hours at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport last night to receive him And Jais 28yearold nephew laid eyes on his uncle for the very first timeOver a smoke and tearsSitting with his brother outside their house this morning over a shared cigarette and some tears Jai recounted how he had given up on seeing his family againOne day there was a fight between some local goons and someone complained against me The police came to my room at midnight and picked me up They kept me in jail for two years and six months I lost all my contacts and couldnt get in touch with my brother He thought that I died said JaiA resident of UP and Jais fellow inmate in the jail came to his rescue After his release he went to Mira Road to Bhagats house to inform him about Jais condition and gave him the phone and fax numbers of the prisonI was very ill in jail They didnt harass me but my health deteriorated my memory weakened I couldnt remember where my family was and how to get in touch with them Seeing my condition the person from UP agreed to find my brother after his discharge Even though by the time he managed to meet Bhagat the embassy had already established contact with my family I will never forget him he saved me and made my last wish come true said JaiJai used to call home regularly until he got arrested When his calls stopped Bhagat filed a police complaint and also wrote to the embassy But it was only after two years that embassy officials visited their home in search of JaiBhagat said They asked me for his ID proof but I didnt have any documents This delayed the process but they promised me that they would bring my brother homeMy son got a call from the consulate on Tuesday morning that Jai would reach Mumbai on the same day but they didnt give a time So I reached airport in the morning itself It took a long time and I refused to get my hopes up until I saw him Then I couldnt believe my eyes he addedA tearyeyed Jai said When I was in jail I used to cry for home for my family every night I am thankful to the consulate for helping me I can now die in peaceJai Singh right had an emotional reunion with his brother Bhagat last night Pic Sameer MarkandeEmployee to illegal alienSingh went to Dubai in 1986 on a work visa but shortly after he lost his job He then started his own business but he suffered losses after which he started working as a dailywage labourer and a paperboyJai said he was unable to return home because the company that had hired him confiscated his passport Embassy officials however said that he lost it in moving from place to place for workHe was living like a nomad there moving from one location to another in search of work said Rajesh Ranjan viceconsul Consulate General of India DubaiAfter his arrest his memory weakened he couldnt recall where his family was and how to contact themWhen the jail authorities got to know his story they contacted the consulate It took authorities almost two months to connect the dots and trace his family in Naya Nagar