Sight for Sore Eyes!

Sikander Inayat one of the many victims of the Lahore twin church bomb attack March 2015

A Pakistani national hero, Sikander Inyat, was given the gift of sight, despite strong fears he would become blind after he risked his own safety to save others during the recent Lahore twin bomb attack (click here) (click here) and (click here).  Sikander was left with severe damage to his right eye which, if left untreated, would have caused potential blindness to his remaining left eye.  Shrapnel had become embedded in the right eye rendering it defunct, the shrapnel damage was slowly causing a poisoning in the vicinity of his enduring left eye. Sadly General Hospital in Lahore, stitched in the shrapnel in a callous attempt to bring him back to their form of stable health, so that he could be dismissed from their hospital.   Due to limited funds we at the BPCA had initially thought that we would not be able to help Sikander and give him the support he desperately needed, but we are delighted and thankful to God that we were able to do so.  During several visits to Sikander his friends and family described the depression that was threatening to consume him, so much so that he almost refused to actually attend this vital operation.

We had been providing monthly groceries to the family but the cost of the operation at £1800 was way beyond what the BPCA could afford as a group – or so we thought. Our doubt threatened to consume us until one of our team started a facebook prayer group (Click here) for our supporters to begin to regularly pray for the needs of the BPCA and our work. The group grew from three to thirty in a matter of days and our donations also grew – it seemed God was answering our prayers. We went back to United Christian Hospital and spoke with Enan Samuel and informed him we could not pay £1800, it was simply beyond our group and that we hoped they might meet us halfway with the costs of the operation as the victim was a national hero.  As if in answer to prayer we were again met with good fortune and after some remonstrating by beloved Enan Samuel, they agreed a discounted cost of £1150.  

Due to low mood and the previous bad experiences Sikander met with at Government hospital where he was not given proper food; was spoken to rudely and was ejected from the hospital prematurely with bills to pay; he initially refused to have the operation. Our Pakistan lead officer Mehwish Bhatti personally encouraged him and his family, explaining that we had paid for the entire operation and his welfare.  She assured him that despite his bad experience with other charities and Government hospital we accepted full responsibility for his care and we would not let him down.  Due to our previous history with his concerns he accepted her assurances and yesterday the operation was successfully started.  Sikander will be required to attend one more day at hospital for the insertion of the artificial eye once the wounds from this initial treatment heal.

Sikander Inayat said:

“I am so happy that this operation has finally come to an end.  I had thought I was going to lose all my sight and that was very frightening.  Now I hope I will lose the headache that was caused by the damage to my right eye.”

Alison Houghton, BPCA Trustee said:

” It is so encouraging to see the ways God has blessed us to be able to provide Sikander with the treatment he so desperately needed and deserved.  Sikander was willing to put others and their wellbeing before himself in a truly Christ like manner, and it has been faith building to see how God has worked through prayer and the great compassion and generosity of our supporters to enable this.  The Lahore bomb attacks were unwarranted acts of pure evil but God is bringing healing and restoration to those affected. I pray for those victims who still require help that BPCA can assist them also”.

Please pray:

That Sikander will heal and recover well and the next stage of his operation will be successful.
For him to fully recover and have his wish of returning to work and supporting his elderly father once more.
For his faith to remain strong and for God to bless him and heal him in every way.
That all the victims of the bomb attacks who are still in need would be taken care of.
For protection for Lahore churches from further Muslim attacks.

There are still many victims of the Lahore bomb attacks 15th March 2015 and the Peshawar bomb attack 22nd September 2013 and we as a group would like to provide hope and help to the innocent Christian victims, targeted because they worship our Lord Jesus Christ , but we can’t do it without you. 

Please help us by giving financially, that we might continue our work for the innocent.  Any donations can be sent using these bank details:

Payee: BPCA


Sort Code: 20-44-22
Account number: 43163318
Bank: Barclays


Ref:  Love for Lahore Christians

For international donations please use these details:

IBAN:  GB62 BARC 20442243163318

SWIFTBIC: BARCGB22

Alternatively if you would like to send a one off donation please use the PayPal facility on the top right hand corner of our blog, our PayPal email address is info@britishpakistanichristians.org.


Any cheques should be made payable to the BPCA
to our address: 57 Green Lane, Ilford, Essex, IG1 1XG.


With your support we hope to change the lives of millions of Christians in Pakistan.

Sikander Inayat Back home resting

Brave Sikander undergoes his operation to save his eyesight

Enan Samuel from United Christian Hospital with Sikander

Sikander returned to the hospital yesterday, 7th August, to have his dressing changed and the doctor decided to remove it, advising him to keep the wound uncovered due to the very humid weather they are currently experiencing. He reported that Sikander was in a very cheerful mood and very grateful for all that the hospital and the BPCA have done for him.