A month ago, fourteen-year-old Mobeen Ahmed, the son of a Lahore cook, was admitted to the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital in Delhi. He was lethargic, undernourished and down with liver cirrhosis. Today, the boy left Delhi with a healthy liver after a successful transplant and dreams of becoming a cricketer. But before he set out for Pakistan, he said a big thank-you to the one person who helped him out — UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

On being told about Mobeen’s love for cricket and movies, Gandhi gifted him a cricket kit and CDs of Shahrukh Khan movies. Asked what sort of help did she extend, Gandhi’s office did not go into details except to say it was monetary assistance.

“We don’t know if this is a big or small move, we only hope it contributes to smoothening ties between the two countries. We usually try and help anyone we can but in this case the child was quite unwell and had come a long way from Pakistan, hoping for better health. We couldn’t have let him down,” said Archana Dalmia, secretary at the Congress president’s office.

Mobeen was advised a liver transplant but the family lacked the resources. The family first got in touch with doctors at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital last year and it took them a while to prepare for the visit. “My father is a cook and his earnings are not enough to fund such an expensive procedure. We had no choice except ask for help. Even to come to India, we had to save and ask people to pitch in,” said Bismil, Mobeen’s elder brother.

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