Status of Gujarati visitors to Christchurch unclear

The whereabouts of a few Gujaratis who were visiting New Zealand's Christchurch, where 49 persons were killed in a deadly terror attack on two mosques on Friday, remained unclear on Saturday.

The state government was awaiting a response from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which was expected by late Saturday.

According to unconfirmed sources, about four to five visitors from Gujarat were feared to be present at the two mosques in Christchurch when the shootings took place.

Mehboob Khokhar, a retired employee of the Gujarat Electricity Board (GEB) and a resident of Ahmedabad's Juhapura, had gone to one of the mosques to offer Friday prayers.

"After the attack in the mosque at Al Noor, my brother-in-law Imran and my mother-in-law Begum Akhtar rushed to the hospitals. But we still don't know whether Khokhar is admitted somewhere or is still missing. We have not received any confirmation from the New Zealand authorities yet," said Hafiz Patni, the son-in-law of Khokhar, who's also a resident of Juhapura.

It is also believed that a father-son duo from Anand were also present at one of the two mosques when the attack took place.

"We are constantly in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs regarding the situation in Christchurch and as soon as we receive any information regarding the Gujarati visitors, we will share it," an official from the office of Pradeep Singh Jadeja, Minister of State (MoS) for Home, told IANS.

--IANS

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