Burdened by debt & Abandoned by Dubai

I am an Indian national that lived in Dubai for over 7 years. I worked in the commercial brokerage sector mainly; I even dabbled in the real estate sector by way of brokerage transactions. While the going was good, we (my wife & I) in the desire of upscaling our lives, invested in an apartment in a 'posh' & 'very upscale' Dubai development by a government developer. The total value of the property was AED 3.1M of which we paid 10% from our own savings & for the remaining amount we approached an Islamic Bank to provide us a home loan.

We were told that what we are availing of is what is known as 'Islamic Finance', also known as 'Ijara' in arabic. We were explained very clearly that although this is technically a loan, the agreement will be structured in the way of a 'long-term lease agreement' whereby the property is not put up as collateral, it in fact belongs to the bank and we are simply renting it from them. The rental amount is calculated basis the standard interest-on-loan practices. Our application was approved, as we were collectively deemed eligible and we went ahead with signing the papers. All of this transpired in early 2008, by when the apartment complex was well under-construction and we were promised handover of the apartment by late 2008.

About the time of promised handover we approached the developer earnestly but we were told by them that since the property is in the name of the bank, they shall only communicate directly with the bank. We felt this was an odd policy, but ignored it on account of how our agreement with the bank had been structured. We then contacted the bank to follow-up regarding handover and they simply asked us to contact the developer directly since they had not been intimated by the developer for anything besides scheduled payments, since the day our agreement had been signed. We were pushed back & forth in this manner for months together until we heard from market sources that the handover had been delayed for over a year. We spoke to the bank immediately and received confirmation that we will not be charged any added interest due to the delay in handover; that had us feeling comfortable.

Around January 2010, my wife & I both lost our jobs co-incidentally, on account of our companies downsizing due to recession. But, our intention regarding the apartment and loan-repayment remained firm since we had saved additional funds to support any kind of adversities like these. I had to travel in & out of Dubai on visit for a few months, until July 2010 which is when I found a new job that would help us get back on track. My wife unfortunately could not find a decent one for herself, and she came to the point of almost giving up on even looking for one; so depressing our circumstances had become. We had to 'buy out' her residence visa from a friend so she could stay back and take care of our pet dog. But the worst was yet to follow.

When I applied for my residence visa on the new job. I was found to be infected with Hepatitis B and declared medically unfit. Before I could have a chance to even understand what the disease was all about, I was asked to pack my bags and leave the country within 7 days, since I was now 'banned' to live & work in the country; I later learned that one cannot even visit the country once banned. I begged & pleaded the authorities to hear out my story; that I had lived & worked in Dubai for over 7 years, owned property, had bank accounts, a house rented for a further 8 months, a loan-free car, miscellaneous possessions, family, friends, my entire life was in Dubai - HOW ARE THEY EXPECTING ME TO JUST PACK & LEAVE?? But all to deaf ears.

Within 7 days I had to sell off my car, furniture, etc, clear out credit card debts & my personal funds, lose my pre-paid rent amount, and report to Al Aweer police station for my 'clearance'. I was escorted to the airport in a police car until I cleared passport control, and I flew back to India. My wife could not stay in Dubai by herself for obvious reasons, plus we knew that she was the only one to take care of me in my ill condition; so she accompanied me on the same flight and we had to leave our pet in the care of a dear friend. I, at first got myself diagnosed in India and met up India's top gaestrologists who advised that I was indeed infected & had just had a narrow escape with being in a very critical condition. I have been advised by all that this disease is not one that can be medically treated by standard medicinal practice and that I will have to undergo special treatment/s that will require lots of money. Additionally, I cannot eat anything more than boiled vegetables or vegetable soup, and I must not exert any kind of pressure on my mind or body until my liver functions are restored to normal levels; by which they simply meant that I should avoid working until I am fully cured lest I want to suffer a relapse.

Now, we haven't been contacted by the bank or the developer since all this happened, but we know we will be eventually; the handover, as I learned recently, is due presently. I had been in touch with the bank between the months of March & June 2010 regarding the same and now I am not sure whether I should call them to inform them of my case. My first priority is to get cured & get back on my feet as early as possible. Until that happens my wife will have to be the sole provider for our living expenses and my medical expenses; not to forget that salary levels are pretty low in India as compared to Dubai, especially for women, and her income may not be enough for our expenses. We are not sure if our savings will suffice even these, leave aside the loan repayments. On the other hand, if I keep up my commitment with the bank and start paying the EMIs, I may not be left with sufficient funds to even survive wherever I am.

In my heart, I have developed this feeling of despise for the UAE government & system that does not care for anyone or anything, and makes up laws overnight that can alter peoples lives very adversely, for absolutely no fault of their own. Most importantly, this has now become a question of loss of confidence with the UAE; as I got to know only recently that prior to mid 2008 they didn't have the ban, then starting Aug 2008 they carried it for 2 years and after I got deported, they have lifted it back. Some well wishers suggest that I should try and go back to Dubai now that the ban is lifted. My question is - what if I come back now as a carrier of HepB, start paying my installments, take up a job, buy a car, etc., etc., and they re-introduce the ban after 2-3-4 years and abruptly ask me to leave....again. What then? I don't think I will ever want to live in a country that treats people like that. My wife & I, are both disgusted with the way we were treated & don't want to go back to a place that threw us out the way it did. I fear that the bank may not hear any of this, since all they will be concerned about is their money. Even if they forfeit the loan, and sell the property at current market prices they will have about AED 1M lesser. I have no doubt that they will pursue me for this, in whichever way they deem fit.

I don't want to be known as a defaulter; I never did want to default. And I don't seek any sympathy for what we went through. But I do want that the esteemed rulers & governors of UAE should hear of my plight.