The Qadian Diary — Page 30
Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 30 Troops of Gurkhas patrolled the subdivision and had set up check points along the road. We crossed these at speed so the guards would have no chance to stop us. When we reached our destination, everything was empty and deserted. Once there, Ahmad Ali made some inquiries about the deputy commissioner, and we learned that he had been stationed elsewhere and his post had been taken over by a Hindu. We dropped the letter where it needed to be delivered and were given a written confirmation of its delivery. After that we went to the bungalow of the Pakistani consul of the district to receive a bag of medicines for Wali Ullah Shah Sahib. With our mission complete, we were ready to return to Qadian. Before departing we asked one of the locals whether to take the road to Tibri or to go via Batala. He suggested the latter, as the route from Tibri was considered dangerous. Yet as our fate would have it, when we were all set to leave, our motorcycle would not start. Someone told us to take the bike to the local train station where a group of Bengalis had decamped. We were told that they would have the necessary tools we needed to fix the motorcycle. However, when we approached them, they shunned our advances and would not even engage us in conversation. Feeling despondent, we tried to kick-start the motorcycle again, and after several attempts we somehow managed to get it working. With that, we were finally able to set off for Qadian. Unfortu- nately, we had only made it as far as Dhariwal that the motorcycle began to splutter and act up again, and when we got close to Naushera, it completely broke down. Stranded and alone, we sat ourselves down by the side of the road and prayed for a miracle. Everything around us was deserted except for the trucks loaded with Hindu and Sikh refugees that, every so often, would pass by our way.