Saira Khan, mother of Junaid, 15, who was stabbed to death in a Mathura-bound train in 2017, and Fatima Nafees, mother of Najeeb Ahmed, 27, who went missing a day after being allegedly assaulted by the Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) activists in 2016, have blamed the apathy of the government and the CBI for their plight.
Speaking at an event organised at Hajj House on Saturday, an emotional Ms. Khan said, “The hate crimes have to stop. My son had simply gone out to shop for Eid and was killed.” She added that “The government is supporting criminals while victims are harassed.” Her son was returning home in the train along with his brothers when they got into an altercation with some men over seats. One of them attacked the brothers with a knife and Junaid was killed.
Ms. Nafees said the authorities have to give justice not only to her but to all mothers who have lost their children. “The last conversation I had with my son was about how he had been beaten up by some people. The next day when I went to meet him, he was missing,” she said. She added that if the victims and their families remain silent, justice will never be served.
Najeeb was a first year M.Sc Biotechnology student at JNU. Investigations into the case were closed by the CBI in October last year.
Congress corporator Haji Babu Khan said the government had to hear the plea of these mothers. Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam also criticised the government and its reluctance to investigate such cases.
He said if the Congress comes to power, all these cases would be reopened.
