Saturday, May 22 - the day that will go down in the history of Indian aviation as one of the most tragic days to say the least, put on display something that our land was so very famous for – Unity. People, irrespective of religion and caste, engaged themselves in rescue operations from the crash site in a way that the world was compelled to take note of it. With no morsel of food dropping down their stomachs, and no drop of water going down their thirsty necks, they carried on. The pat on the back, the ‘Hats offs’, and words of appreciation and gratitude poured in from all quarters including the Union Civil Aviation Minister, the Director General of Police of Karnataka, the MD of Air India and various other people from the ‘men who matter’ contingent.
Media too was one of the first to take note of the tremendous work that the local hands put in. Soon, a few of the rescuers came into the limelight. Many among them, who would never have imagined that their names will ever appear in newspapers and other media, suddenly made headlines and went on to be identified as National heroes. Not all rescuers, the hundreds of them, who sweat it out at the crash site got a specific individual mention in the media. But the beauty of the entire operation that they carried out lies in the fact that they did so not for any reward or fame.
Over the past 2-3 days, however, we witnessed a strange development. Press conferences were being arranged by a few in connection with the rescue operations. And guess what the topics which these revolved around? Sadly, they were arranged to say ‘We rescued, and not him’.
It was Sathish Devadiga and Co., rescuers from Maravoor village who started it off. In a press conference that they had arranged at the Press Club of the city on May 26, they told mediapersons their side of the story: “A person from Maravoor has given statements to the media that he rescued Sabrina Nasrin Haq. In fact, the local villagers rescued her and not him. He wasn’t even there when the locals put her in the ambulance”, they said.
Every action has an equal and opposite reaction, goes Newton’s third law of motion. A response was very much on the cards. And it came on Friday, with Sameer, accused of claiming himself to be a ‘self acclaimed rescuer’ by the other group, holding a press conference at the very same Press Club to present his clarifications. He presents the facts before mediapersons including the specific time at which he gave a call to the Police Control Room and also the response from the Commissioner of Police. He reveals the names of those who accompanied him to the spot where Sabrina was crying for help (Muhammad Bava, Naushad, Ashraf). He says they rescue her from the trees where she was stuck and hand her over to other locals who were coming in from behind to the spot. Similarly, he discloses how his friend Shareef took Abdullah, Samettadka and Ummer Farooq of Ullal in his bike towards the road from where one of them was sent to the hospital in an auto rickshaw. He even reveals the name of the rickshaw driver (Ishwar) and another person who helped Shareef (Francis). He recalls that the City Police Commissioner had expressed his gratitude to him (Sameer) in front of the media as he was the first to inform the police about the mishap. He concludes by clarifying that it was not he who wanted publicity but the mediapersons themselves who had come to interview him after they came to know that he was the first informer.
Well, fair enough again. When someone lays an accusation against you, you have every right to clear the air and most of us would not have an issue with that.
But somewhere in this entire episode, one does feel a bit disappointed that the ‘We did it actually’ factor came in. The mishap was such that it was more of an obligation, a duty, a push of the moral conscience within, that people had to oblige to and rescue the victims. Claiming credit for an act of obligation, gives a rather unpleasant picture really.
It’s a disease that some of us have, to make our nobleness known to the world. Almighty Allah alone knows the intentions of people who strived at the crash site in particular and the others whose noble deeds gain publicity in general. It would be wrong on our part to doubt the integrity and intentions of the rescuers including Devadiga, Sameer and others, for only He knows what lies within. But what we all need to learn is what can happen if noble acts are carried out just for fame and show off.
Perhaps this hadith may give a better idea:
Abu Sa’id (RA) narrates that the Prophet (pbuh) came out of his house to us while we were talking about Dajjal. The Prophet (pbuh) said ‘Should I not tell you what causes me more fear for you than Dajjal?’ We replied: Certainly yes. The Prophet (pbuh) replied ‘Shirk-ul-Khafi’ (hidden polytheism), like a man who gets up to offer salah (prayers) and tries to offer it beautifully because he notices someone is looking at him’
(Ibne Majah)
The act of showing off is being termed as ‘Shirk’ (associating partners with the One True God) and we know that Allah is ready to forgive any sin except for shirk. It is time for me, for you, and for each one of us, to peep into ourselves and ascertain if things are going the right way. The scenes of the burning aircraft and the charred bodies have indeed stunned us. We have to take the hellfire seriously, which is waiting to pounce on the disobedient lot. The victims of the plane crash got charred once. But in hell, the burning would go on, and on, and on….
The beauty of a noble deed lies in the secrecy in which it is done. In one of the hadiths the Prophet (pbuh) has said that one among the seven people who would receive the shade of arsh on the Last Day, is a man who gives charity in such secrecy that (even) his left hand does not know what his right hand has spent.
As to all those who went out there and took part in rescue operations expecting no thank yous, no rewards and no publicity, you still are our heroes. Heroes, in the true sense of the term.
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