KHOTANG, May 21: It has been 26 years since Dilsara Rai of Ainselukharka Rural Municipality-3 has been waiting for her husband to re-return home from Malaysia. Her husband Narbhakta went to the foreign land when their younger son Bishal was only three years old. Bishal is now 29 but he has not seen his father even once all these years.

Narbhakta was in contact with his family for two years after going to Malaysia. But suddenly he went out of contact and no one has any idea about his whereabouts since then. "We had enough ancestral property but still he insisted going abroad to make his own money," said Dilsara, adding, "We were in touch for about two years but he went out of contact after that."

Even after so many years, Dilsara and her children still worry about Narbhakta and wish him to come back home. They still believe that he is alive but also suspect that he might have married someone else and decided to settle down in Malaysia. Narbhakta who was born in 1956 tied the nuptial knot with Dilsara when they were both nine years old. The couple has four daughters and a son. 

In absence of her husband, Dilsara raised all her five children by herself. Her four daughters have already got married and she is currently living with her son. Now 66 years old, Dilsara had expected that their life would change for good after her husband will go to Malaysia. However, she was unaware that things will get worse instead.

 In absence of her husband, it has been difficult for them to transfer the ownership of their ancestral property. Most of their property is in the name of Narbhakta's grandfather. She laments that her relatives are hurdles for her to transfer the ownership of their ancestral property to their names. "It has been decades since we started fighting for our share of the property but we have not received anything due to the obstructions from our relatives. But we have not lost hope yet."

 
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