Gurtej Singh, a 55-year-old man from Mattewara village in Ludhiana, Punjab, has returned home after being stranded in Lebanon for 23 years. Singh moved to Lebanon in 2001 for work but was unable to return after losing his passport. While his companions returned home during the 2006 Lebanon war, Singh was left behind.
Struggles without a passport
Without a passport, Singh lived in fear of being caught and tried unsuccessfully to secure a duplicate document. Despite his and his family’s efforts to bring him back, he remained stuck. "I used to think how I would return to India," he told PTI, recounting his ordeal.
"I went to Lebanon in 2001 for work to give a better life to my family," said Singh, now aged 55. "(When the war broke out) I also wanted to return to India. I went to the Indian Embassy several times but they wanted some proof (to issue a duplicate passport)," he told PTI on Saturday.
Return thanks to intervention
Singh’s return became possible after AAP Rajya Sabha member Balbir Singh Seechewal raised his case with the Ministry of External Affairs. Authorities managed to retrieve a copy of his lost passport, allowing him to finally reunite with his family on September 6.
Emotional homecoming
Singh left behind two young sons when he departed for Lebanon. Now, his elder son has a six-year-old child of his own. Reflecting on his return, Singh described it as a "second birth" after being separated from his family for over two decades.
Also read | Subhankar Sarkar replaces Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury as new West Bengal Congress president
