It wasn’t a usual day at the Gurugram district court on Friday. As the verdict in the much-awaited 2012 Maruti Suzuki violence case was announced, the families of the accused workers experienced a barrage of emotions. While some breathed a sigh of relief, others plunged into grief.
Yadhvendra Sharma, a resident of Rajasthan’s Bharatpur, came out of the court room, looked at his father and shouted in happiness, “ Main bari ho gya [I’ve been acquitted]”. Soon, tears started rolling down his cheeks as it struck him how his life had changed because of the case.
“I spent more than four years in jail before I got the bail. My family spent ₹2-3 lakh on me every year. The company crippled us, mentally and monetarily,” he said.
Long-drawn battle
Sharma is not alone in the battle. Most of those acquitted said they lost precious years of their lives while bearing the burden of the case. Many of them were the sole breadwinners of their families, and with them behind bars, their families had to depend on relatives for support.
Some broke down while narrating the stories of the time when they were away from their families in jail.
“I left my two-month-old son behind when I was imprisoned. The day I came out, he didn’t recognise me. That was heartbreaking,” said Sharma, who was released on bail in 2015.
Unemployment was another problem that many talked about. “Nobody wanted to hire me because I had been behind bars for almost three years,” said 25-year-old Karamvir Singh Dhingra, a resident of Ambala.
Interestingly, Karamvir has now taken admission into a law course. “I opted for this course because I have to recover the money my family spent on,” he said.
The biggest question on everybody’s minds, however, was put forth by Sharma.
“This verdict is a slap on the face of the company which has spoiled my life. I want to ask them that who gave them the right to do so,” he said.
Hoping against hope
Meanwhile, the families of those convicted said they had not lost courage.
Sitting on a bench outside the court room, Avtar Singh, the father of Sarabjit Singh, a former union member who was convicted, held a packet of medicines in his hand to give it to his son. After the verdict, the 62-year-old retired postman broke down and said, “The Almighty has pulled us through till date. He’ll only take care of us in the future.”
A resident of Kurukshetra district, Singh has been visiting his son twice every month since his imprisonment and claimed to have spent nearly ₹1 crore during the trial with support from NGOs and funds gathered by trade unions.
But the man hasn’t lost hope. “I am sure he’ll come back soon. If not today, then in a few days, maybe a few months,” he said.
Balwan Singh, brother of Ram Meher, another convict, said his family had suffered a lot. “We don’t have any option but to accept the verdict. We’ll see what happens next.”
