He is no doctor if one goes by his qualifications alone and yet hundreds of people flock to him every Friday to get cured.

Abdul Kadir, interestingly, has never even been to primary school. But from a toothache to arthritis, Kadir claims he can cure anything with the help of his creepy, sticky and crawling friends — leeches.

Every Friday, patients come to Kadir, who sits outside the gates of the Hazratbal shrine in downtown Srinagar with water-filled jars that contain hungry leeches ready to suck blood.

Kadir places three leeches on the affected part of the patient’s body and they begin to suck blood. After the leeches are removed, the patient is left bleeding but there are no complaints.

Instead, they thank Kadir, pay him his fees and make an appointment for another session.

“Leech therapy is not new. It is an ancient and most reliable therapy with no side effects and the Muslim holy book of Al-Hadith also makes a clear reference to it,” says Kadir.

“A disease is caused due to the presence of impure blood clots in the body. These leaches simply suck the harmful blood out of the patient’s body,” he said.

Many patients who come to Kadir endorse his claims, saying they have undergone remarkable improvement after this therapy.

“For the past five years I was suffering from serious arthritis and could not even move. I tried all kinds of treatment but there was no relief. Then, somebody told me about Kadir’s treatment. I have been coming here every Friday for the past two months and the improvement is remarkable,” says Manzoor Ahmed Sofi, a retired college professor.

Kadir charges Rs 10 from his patients for every leech he applies, “One leech costs Rs 10. One has to apply at least 10 leeches to a patient to get some promising results and I can assure that any disease is curable through this therapy,” he claims.

Even the doctors agree with Kadir. “Yes, the leech therapy is beneficial in various diseases. Research on leeches is going on in the West and it has shown positive signs,” says Reyaz Ahmed, a Unani doctor in Srinagar.

“Last year, the Union Health Ministry decided to recognise leech therapy for a range of diseases. Clinical trials were conducted at the Unani Research Institute in Srinagar, in which four leeches were placed under the ears of 25 patients suffering from hypertension and their blood pressure came down in all cases,” he says.

But doctors do warn people from undergoing leech therapy with roadside quacks.

“A leech has to be well sterilised before it is applied to the human body. Any negligence could cause serious infection,” warns Ahmed.

Kadir’s patients, however, are not worried.

“We have to look at the positive side of the therapy,” says Mustaq Ahmed who came from Uri for treatment of his brother’s feet that were affected by frostbite last winter.