Shireen Begum languishes for an eternity like other family members outside the BDR Headquarters at Pilkhana to get news of their soldier fathers, brothers and husbands, reports bdnews24.com.
Their men went to report to duty after the government had summoned them to report in the wake of the February 25-26 BDR mutiny.
"Today is the sixth day of the month and I haven't been able to manage my 10-month old baby's food, house rent or tuition fees for my four school-going children yet," Shireen, wife of BDR lance naik Jainal Hossain said in front of BDR Sat Masjid Road gate.
"Allah alone knows how we are surviving since my husband reported back here at the BDR Headquarters. No one has bothered to tell us if he's alive either. Even jailbirds get to see their folks," adds Shireen, the eyes teary and voice laden with sadness.
Not only her, a number of other BDR soldiers' family members or close relatives throng the BDR gate looking forward to meeting either their dear and near ones or receiving some message about their well-being.
Havildar Md Kamal Hossain's wife Bulbuli Begum said her husband joined duty on February 3.
"But I haven't been told anything about what happened to him inside."
"I have been going from one gate to another searching for him. My son is so depressed that he has stopped going to school."
Lance naik Younus's wife has come with her son Ishtiaque, 7, and daughter Ishrat, 5, looking for their father. She speaks to the sentries posted at the BDR gate.
Asked how her husband is doing, the poor woman burst into tears. BDR member Md Wadudur Rahman's wife Merina Begum said, "We want the perpetrators of this heart-rending massacre punished, but no innocent person should be harassed in any case."
"I haven't been able to contact my husband during the last two days. I wasn't allowed to go to my Pilkhana residence either.
"With my two kids, I've been putting up at a relative's place. I can't even go to our village home because I don't have any money left." Unhappy with the media in general, Kohinoor Begum, wife of a tailor employed by the BDR, said, "My husband hasn't received his salary yet because of the situation inside the Pilkhana."
"But no media is highlighting our miserable plight. We're not involved in anything outrageous. Why must we be made to suffer?
"Please write about us, brothers. We want the government to pay the innocent their monthly salaries only."
Mujibur Rahman from Betagi, Barguna, came to Pilkhana four days back looking for his younger brother BDR clerk Shameem. Failing, Mujib seems to be at a loss.
"Shameem entered into the Headquarters on February 2 and has gone missing since then. I've been waiting here for him at the gate daily from the morning till evening, but to no avail.
"I asked the police. They say they don't know. They won't allow me to stand by the gate even. "Where shall I go? Who'll tell me about my brother's situation?"
A large number of BDR men fled the Pilkhana after the recent carnage. The government on February 28 issued notice asking all fugitives to report back within 24 hours. More than 5,000 BDR troops have since rejoined duties.
On February 28, a treason case was filed naming BDR deputy assistant director Touhidul Alam and five others and putting in over a thousand names as accused in connection with the Feb 25-26 uprising.
