Free... At last !!!

May 9th 2007... They will remember this date forever... for as long as their lives are remaining after 14 years of ordeal.. 14 yrs of suffering.. 14 yrs of being stamped as the TRAITOR..

23 accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts were finally released formally after their acquittal last year...
Yes.. what happened in 1993 was gruesome.. a crime that warranted death sentences to those found guilty.. The Mumbai police did an amazing job.. handling the investigation.. getting most of those involved arrested (the masterminds were never touched!!).. But have u spared a thought for thos who were not guilty???
Those who were rounded simply because they were known to the accused..
simply cuz they had been to dubai at the same time the conspiracy was hatched...
Or simply because they were belonging to the minority community????

They were thrashed... Stripped in front of their women-folk... made to lie nude on ice bars... nails and hair pulled out... genitals stomped upon.. and their women folk were even molested in front of their own eyes... Just go through BLACK FRIDAY , the book.. and you'll come to know about the atrocities they inflicted..

Agreed, the 23 accused may indeed be still guilty... but what is even 1 person amongst the 23 is innocent... Did he deserve such a treatment??
Think about that one person... he would have been in his early 20s when he was taken away into police custody... 14yrs... Yes.. 14yrs of trials n tribulations..
14 Yrs or being looked upon as a Traitor... a renegade.. a quisling.. a turncoat.. Or simply put, a Desh-drohi!!
Why was he inflicted with such a charge?? Why were the 14 most productive years of his life taken away??
Even he had a family to support.. children and elderly parents to look after.. sisters to get married off.. He wasnt a big-shot politician ... or a Bollywood star!!
He belongs to the minority religion... He's a God fearing person.. Allah is everything to him.. Everyday , every night he used to pray to allah.. pray to be relieved of this misery..
His family was outcasted.. "Traitors.. they all are", they all said..

Homo praesumitur bonus donec probetur malus.. The famous Latin maxim..

It means.. "One is innocent until proven guilty"...
This wasnt the case in the 93 Blasts case.. they were all guilty until proven innocent!!

14 yrs of ordeal is over.. He is free again.. The "Traitor" tag is removed from his forehead forever.. or is it??
He is ecstatic.. but he's impassive.. He cant express his ambivalence.. He has nothing to say..
He is past 40 yrs now.. lost his job, parents have passed away, long awaiting the return of his innocent child,whom they know can never commit such a heinous act... He has to start from scratch again..
He feels like a 10 month old child, trying to stand up on his feet again.. trying to take his first step forward.. He was stuck in the moment for 14 long years.. a life term for a crime he did not commit...
And even after his acquittal, he'll be known as the person accused in the blasts case.. people will still eye him with suspicion.. "Who knows???", they'll say... But he knows.. and He knows..