Fayaz, 50, lived in Raigunj village in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur district. To make a living, he would roam around villages and show acrobats or play the dholak. The family — wife and children — somehow managed with Rs 100-200 he would earn every day. But, since the lockdown, Fayaz couldn’t even step out.
On the morning of June 2, his wife, Sahrun, suggested that he goes out with the dholak. There was nothing at home, so she thought maybe he would be able to get some cash so that their children could eat.
He left of his bicycle. That was the last time she saw him leaving on his bicycle along with the dholak. The same night Fayaz committed suicide at his home. He hanged himself.
The whole day Fayaz went around the village, but fearing coronavirus, no one let him perform. People were not willing to be a part of the crowd. Fayaz couldn’t earn a penny.
“When he returned in the evening, kids went up to him running. They thought he had bought something to eat. He didn’t say anything and went to lie down on the bed,” said Sahrun.
She added: “When kids asked for some cash so that they can go and buy biscuits, he said he didn’t have any cash. He asked them to sleep so that he could sleep too.”
She went to a few houses nearby to ask for leftover food. The family ate that and they all went to sleep.
“Before going off to sleep he told me that people didn’t let him perform and that he didn’t wish to live. He said he couldn’t feed the children,” said the wife. This was the last conversation the couple had. The next morning, his wife saw him hanging.
The family does not get enough ration. “Earlier, we would get 45 kg ration, now we are getting 25 kg. When we went to the gram pradhan, he asked us to register our names online. This was two months back. We were still not getting ration. I went to the ration office. It was shut due to the lockdown. They asked us to go to the block office. That was shut too. We tried a lot, but nothing happened,” said his wife. She added: “He couldn’t earn due to the lockdown. The police would not let him step out.”
