A referee’s refusal to lose hope

In 1998, SM Kamrul Islam Babu, a native of Dhulgram village in Abhaynagar upazila, Jashore, badly injured both of his hands while working with a shallow machine at a fish enclosure.

He underwent a long and arduous treatment after the accident but in the end, the doctors had no other choice but to amputate both hands from the wrists.

Babu, a person who grew up very much involved in the sporting scenes in the Khulna region and had earned a black belt in martial arts from Bangladesh Dragon Karate Club in Dhaka, was dealt the cruelest of hands by fate.

Over a quarter of a century has passed since then. Babu now works as a serial and timekeeper of auto-tempos in the Abhaynagar market in Jashore to run a family of five, which included two daughters, a wife and his mother.

Babu prides himself of being able ride bicycle, motorcycle and also drive cars. He has also taught himself how to write, use a phone and do all day-to-day activities.

But what really sets apart Babu is the fact that he is always on call to serve as referee in football matches in Khulna and surrounding districts.

"You can master any task with will power. Nothing is impossible for human beings. A lot can be achieved with a little effort," Babu told the reporter.

Babu is regularly seen running up and down the touchline as a linesman in Pioneer Football League matches as well as second and third-division games in 10 districts in the Khulna region, with the flag tied to his hand with a special rubber.

Babu, who is a member of the Khulna District Football Referee Association, also gets offers to work as a referee in upazila level matches from other districts.

Even after the accident, Babu didn't lose his connection with sports as he regularly played football and also carrom, his other love.

He first stumbled onto refereeing in 2007, when he officiated a football game in his village. After that, his reputation as referee soared as he was regularly getting called up to different places to officiate local football games.

In 2014, he met the general secretary of Khulna District Football Referee Association Ehsanul Haque at the Khulna District Stadium.

Ehsanul sensed Babu's keen interest in refereeing and arranged special training for him. Soon, he sat for the Class 3 referee certification exam and passed it.

In 2017, he upgraded to Class 2 after passing a promotion exam at the Bangabandhu National Stadium.

Babu said that former FIFA referee Munsur Azad, former FIFA referee and Bangladesh Football Referee Association deputy chairman Ibrahim Neshar supported him in his journey to becoming a Class 2 referee.

"Babu overcame all obstacles. He can write fluently, so there is no problem in him performing the duties of the fourth referee. The most important thing is that he does not consider himself as a person with a disability," said Ehsanul.

Babu said that he never let his disability define him, "A person who doesn't have both of his hands can't do many things. But I tried to do everything by myself. Only when I got stuck, I took help from others."

Having overcome an enormous obstacle on his way to fulfilling his dream, Babu had a simple but powerful message for anyone who is facing adversities. "Everything is possible if you try. Hard work does not discriminate. If you learn to work, you will get the results. No matter what happens, never lose hope."