A father-of-six spoke of his devastation at the death of his "very special" wife in a horrific accident.

Raqia Begum was killed when a runaway car parked on a hill with the handbrake off knocked her over and dragged her down the road in front of her terrified young daughter.

Her husband of 37 years, Medhi Tufzal, left to bring up their three youngest children alone, said his daughter Sonenna, eight, is still traumatised by what she saw the day her mum died.

"She was there to see the whole thing happen and watched in horror as her mother died," said Mr Tufzal, of Lydgate Drive, Lidget Green.

"I don't think she will ever get over it."

Raqia had been on her way to collect two of her other children from nearby Farnham Primary School when the tragedy happened at about 3pm on September 29 last year.

An inquest in Bradford , heard how 53-year-old Raqia was walking with Sonenna in Great Horton Road, Bradford, when she was dragged down the hill by the runaway vehicle.

Bradford Coroner's Court was told the owner of the vehicle, Arben Emini, a Kurdish asylum seeker, had left his two-year-old nephew in the car as he parked on double yellow lines to go to buy sweets for the child.Witness Jeanette Khan told the court when she first saw the runaway car coming down the hill she thought it was being driven by a Muslim woman wearing a burka.

"It was not until it got closer to me that I saw there was no one behind the wheel," she said.

"It was then I noticed the child in the back seat of the vehicle."

The toddler, who was strapped into a child-safety seat, was unhurt in the accident.

West Yorkshire Coroner Roger Whittaker heard how Raqia suffered a broken neck, despite the low speed of the car.

She was later pronounced dead at Bradford Royal Infirmary.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Mr Whittaker said: "I am entirely satisfied the handbrake in the car was in perfect working condition.

"The handbrake was not applied when the vehicle was parked outside the off-licence and that caused the car to roll down the hill and hit Mrs Begum causing fatal injuries."

Speaking after the inquest, Mr Tufzal, 55, said the family had been devastated by the accident.

"We have lost someone very special, she was a wonderful wife and a much-loved mother whose memory will never be forgotten," he said.

Mr Tufzal, who described his wife as a dedicated follower of Islam, said she had been very happy the night before the accident because it was a holy day in the Muslim calendar.

"She prayed from dusk till midnight to celebrate the birth of the Prophet," he said.

"She was feeling very happy."

On the day of the accident, he was at work on a training programme when he was told about his wife's death.

"She had called a couple of hours earlier asking me to go home for lunch, but I did not have time to get home," he said.

The family had moved to Bradford last year from Paris.

Mr Tufzal said they left France, where they had lived for more than 16 years, because they feared the country was changing and thought England would be a better place to bring up their children.

"When the French Government ruled our children could no longer wear the hijab to school we knew things were changing there," he said.

"We wanted to come and live somewhere more tolerant of the Muslim way of life.

"My wife's culture and identity were very important to her.

"My wife was very excited about her new life here in Bradford.

"She was close to her family and friends and was looking forward to watching her young children grow up here."

(By Jennifer Sugden)