Brave Coimbatore dealer drowns trying to save nephew

Chennai

February 22nd, 2008

A weekend family trip turned out to be a tragic one for Coimbatore based IT
trader AH Saleem of Compusoft who lost his life in the backwaters of Malampuzha
River, in a futile attempt to save his nephew, who was drowning. Two other
friends of Saleem's family, who attempted to save the boy, also lost their
lives. Saleem, 31 is survived by his wife and two little children.

The Malampuzha River located at around 50 kms from Coimbatore is considered
to be a scenic location, though drowning incidents are regular there. Saleem's
11-year-old nephew who attempted to learn swimming in the backwaters of the
river got stuck in the marshland. His father Nayeem, Saleem's elder brother,
attempted to save him and few other relatives along with Saleem got into the
water.

However the attempt was unsuccessful and the boy was declared dead in the
hospital after being brought out by Nayeem. Along with the help of rescue
workers the bodies of Saleem and two other relatives were recovered.

Saleem was the award winner in The DQ Week's Premier Reseller for 2005.

"His way of showing respect and soft-spoken character flashes my mind
whenever I think of Saleem. He would be the first person to co-operate for
whatever decisions I took," said S Karthikeyan, President, CONFED-ITA,
while remembering Saleem. He also said that Saleem was a fun loving person, who
a showed keen interest in car races.

Nayeem is the CEO of Compustar in Coimbatore said, "I have lost my only
son and most lovable brother Saleem."

Coimbatore IT dealers remained closed last Monday, as a mark of respect to
late Saleem and his family members, who died in the tragic incident. "We
will pay our respects at both CONFED and Coimbatore Association meetings, where
we will gather soon," informed Karthikeyan.