Agony…

Another year goes by and we the tax paying population of this country are still paying for Ajmal Kasab’s bread, clothes and security.

The Indian population has a short memory span and we truly believe in the policy of forgiving and forgetting. We have already forgotten people behind the Fodder Scams, Stock Market Scams, Common Wealth Games corruption, Satyam Corporate Scam and more recently people behind LIC Housing Schemes corruption saga and we have already forgiven the Kargil war, the 2001 attack on the Parliament, the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts, the July 11, 2006 serial blasts in Mumbai local trains, the 2008 serial bomb blasts in Delhi and I am sure many more such killings and attacks.

Well, now we are all set to forget the 26/11 attacks on Mumbai as well despite the fact that this attack was unprecedented not only because of its severity but also by the nature of the raw brutal force that a handful of militants doled out to take an entire city hostage for over 48 hours. 24 months have passed and here we are still sitting pretty on the verdict, waiting and playing a political drama and carrying out a legal judicial battle for someone who butchered scores of people at the CST without any remorse.

Maybe my opinion is not important, as I do not hold an office of legislative or judicial relevance on the subject. Maybe there is a larger political or strategic gain (which is beyond my comprehension) involved in keeping Ajmal Kasab alive all this time. I don’t know. All I know is that multiple lives were lost that day and as the entire nation witnessed the horror showered by a handful of paid terrorists, there were wounds inflicted on the dignity of the nation which would never heal.

Personally I am against Ajmal Kasab’s hanging. In fact, I would appreciate it more, if the Indian judicial system can dare make an example out of him. I would rather have his limbs severed in full public view (perhaps right in the center of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus where he opened fire on people) and he is forced to live at the mercy of people, eating and living like a dog for the rest of his life.

I know this is just wishful thinking on my part and none of this shall ever happen. Maybe one of these days, his death penalty would be revoked and he would be allowed to “live happily and safely” serving a life sentence in one of state owned jails – till the time another IA-814 episode is repeated and he is ‘rescued’ by his fellow colleagues.

However, I refuse to forget one of the saddest chapters in the history of this country and my heart and prayers go out to the families and friends of people and security personnel who lost their lives this day 2 years ago. I wish and pray that they get their due justice and find their peace.

Revisiting previous posts on the subject:

• Life Under Siege
• While the Flame is Alive
• 365 Days Later
• The Verdict