Convict 786

While she was entering into jail, she was stopped by a prison guard. She handed a letter to the guard. She asked the guard to convey her letter to the jailor, Rano Samaddar. The guard took the girl to Mr. Samaddar along with the letter.

Mr. Samaddar is a cruel jailor. He hates criminals. He never compromises with the criminals. He is a specialist to break the bones of convicts. His eyebrow wrinkled when he read the letter. He scanned the girl from head to toe with his query eyes.

The girl looked like 38 years of age. She was wearing a red transparent saree through which her ample breasts were being vaguely revealed. Her hair was long and black, braided down her back. She wore heavy makeup. Her cheeks were red as she applied blusher on it.

 "Take her to convict 786. This is an order letter from the upper department." He ordered the guard.

The guard followed his order. She was taken through a long room where on both sides small cells were lined up. Every convict from the cells ogled at her. It seemed if they were set free, they would pounce over the girl. 

"Most of them are rape convicts." The guard informed her.

She was stopped near a special separate cell where a man was lying in a corner of the floor. He looked at both of the guard and the girl after hearing the opening sound of the iron gate of the cell. The guard poked the man with his long stick. The convict got up and squatted on the floor.

The convict seemed to be a middle-aged man. His cheeks were sunken. His beard and moustache were white. He was very weak. Bruises were spotted everywhere on his whole body. Those were the clear evidence of his interrogation in jail.

"This girl has come to visit you," the guard told him in a cracked voice.

"I have no one. I don't need anyone either," he murmured.

"Please, leave us alone. I have to stay here alone with him." The girl requested the guard.

He, leaving the girl along with the convict, locked the gate from outside and left the place.

"Who are you? Do I know you?" The convict asked.

"My name is Anju. I'm a sex worker. I was sent to entertain you." She disrobed her saree. 

She was in red petticoat and blouse. She was stopped by the convict at the time when she was about to loosen her petticoat. 

"I do not have any strength to have sex now. I am not able to move myself a slight either. They cruelly tortured me." The man pushed the girl away.

"Who sent you here?" Convict wanted to know in low voice.

The girl was silent. She gave him the same letter. He read the letter. The letter was from his friend, Dipen who is now a minister. The girl was a gift from Dipen because his hanging date had been fixed after two days. Convict remembered the declaration of the judge. He moaned in pain.

Anju was curious to know his story. She requested him to share his story. In response, he reminisced his past.

"My name is Vishnu. I was a brilliant student. I was very popular in college. My name was nominated in the college union only for my popularity. The members of the union decided my name as the general secretary. No one asked my consent. I was reluctant for the union elections, but I agreed later for the demand of college students. I won the election and became G.S of college. Students needed me for any subtle matter. I became their leader. I even interfered in the authorization process. Power made me blind. 

I was the only person who could admit any student without the highest marks. I would sleep with girls in exchange. I also initiated to help people outside the college. My name spread rapidly. I was offered for a vital designation in the state party. Without thinking much, I accepted the offer. From college union, I joined the state party. I met Dipen right there. He too came from another college. Since then, we became active workers of the party.

As I was busy in several activities of the party, I consequently lost interest in the study. Our party was founded to protect Hinduism. I, along with Dipen and other party workers, learnt different fighting techniques to save Hindus in the time of the riot.

In 2002 Gujrat, a riot broke out. Our party ordered us to go to Gujrat and save Hindus. More than 5000 party workers were sent to Gujrat from every district of West Bengal. On reaching there, we began to kill the Muslims instead of saving Hindus. However, we did this heinous crime for the party. We brutally killed old Muslim men and women, raped their girls mercilessly, set fire to their property and destroyed mosques. I fully became a monster. The massacre continued for almost one month.

Because the local police force failed to combat, the curfew was imposed. The special force was called in to handle the situation. We were informed about the force coming to arrest us by our party. Most of the party workers fled from the spot. Dipen managed to escape. He left Gujrat. But I went on a killing spree. I with a few of my party members got caught. Hadn't Dipen escaped that time, he never could have become a minister. He would wait for his death today with me." 

Vishnu murmured in anger. He looked at the girl. He paused for some seconds and calmed himself. He began his story again.

 "I had no remorse after killing them. I knew that my party will save me. But I was wrong. Our trial lasted for three months in Gujrat High Court. Our Party refused to recognise me as one of the party workers because I was accused as the murderer of innocent Muslims. I, along with my other companions, faced the principal punishment and sent to one of the jails in Gujrat. There in the lock-up, Gujrat police interrogated us. Officers used a belt which is used in flour mill, to beat us. They used to strike on the inner part of hand and feet about 200 times per spell leaving part of hand and feet in blue colour with strong pain during torture. It continued till the evening. After beating, the parts of hands and feet would become swollen. They also used this belt to torture us on any part of the body, even on buttock also, due to this torture I could not sit properly.

 Since we were not the inhabitants of Gujrat, we were sent back to this prison in West Bengal. Here the Kolkata High Court ordered some of us to be hanged till death."

Anju started crying after hearing his story. Tears spilt down her eyes. It seemed she also had a painful story.

Vishnu asked Anju to share her story. Anju, wiping her tears, started her story.

"I'm a Bangladeshi Hindu. I was very happy with my parents in Bangladesh. My father was a priest. Adjacent to our hut was the temple of goddess Kali. One night, a group of Muslim iconoclasts attacked our temple. They broke the idol of Kali. My father restrained them from breaking the idol. They stabbed my father several times. I saw my father trying hard to save his life from inevitable death. He was lying in a pool of blood with multiple knife wounds. They stabbed my mother after him. They both died before my eyes. I couldn't save them. Our hut and temple were demolished. Before I ran from the spot, they caught me. 

The whole night, they raped me one after one. I moaned in pain but they tied my mouth with a cloth. I moved my hands to save myself but they fractured my hands. Still, I can feel severe pain what I suffered that night. In next morning, they fled away dumping me alone. I tried hard to move my body but I couldn't. The police came and took me to a government-run hospital. 

For three months, I was lying motionless on the floor of the hospital compound as there was no space for the patients. Every day, I only could see the admissions of Hindu women with the same tragedy. Later when I was able to move my body, they discharged me. I had no place to go. So, I took shelter in one of the government rescue camps. Many Hindu families had already taken shelter in the camp. I met Tanima in the camp.

Within a few days, we became good friends. I often shared my life stories with her but she never said a word about her past. Whenever I wanted to know, she replied the same line that she would tell me everything someday. One night I couldn't sleep. I remembered my parents and that terrible night. I opened my eyes. I needed to talk to Tanima but I couldn't find her beside me. I looked for her here and there. I saw her going towards the backside of the camp. The place was secluded. No one usually dared to go there. I pursued her. I was shocked to see her talking to someone over a satellite phone. I overheard part of her conversation."

"We're very close to the case, we'll nab them very soon." She cut the call after saying this. 

"I came close to her and wanted to know her identity. In reply, she disclosed that she was a spy sent by an intelligence agency of India. I got to know about the secret mission of the Muslim iconoclasts from her. It was headed by an intelligence agency of Pakistan. Their mission was only to eradicate Hindus from Bangladesh. Tanima was sent to nab the culprit behind this master plan. She also informed that the next day she was going to arrest one of the agents of Pakistan. We went back to our camp and slept.

The next day I could not find Tanima anywhere. After a thorough search, I understood that she was probably killed by a Pakistani agent. I suspected that the camp staff were involved.

I couldn't stay there for a long because I had known the fact, therefore, one of the staff secretly sold me at a higher price. I was forcefully smuggled across the border. Like me, many other Hindu girls were also smuggled into India. 

We were dragged to a house in Kolkata. The surroundings were full of three-story houses where small rooms are visible on each storey. The houses were nothing more than mere concrete structures with paints wearing out from almost everywhere giving an eerie feeling that the walls were about to crumble any minute. I was handed over to Jamuna mashi, an owner of one house. Jamuna mashi paid them some money and they left the place. I could sense where I was. It was frequented by many big shots and the richest, for it housed the best of the beauties willing to strip naked and offer their body just for the pleasure of the guys who visited them. Yes, it was the famous brothel place of the town. I tried to run away many times but they have the guards. I got punished every time I tried to escape. I cried the whole day and night but no one was there to listen. 

One day Dipen babu came to our house. He was welcomed with a garland of flowers by Jamuna mashi. We were called and told to stand in a queue. Dipen babu was supposed to choose one of us for the night. He chose me. Dipen babu took me to a small room where he played with my body the whole night. He was a sexual predator. I remembered those Muslim iconoclasts who had raped me the same way that night. I felt raped for the second time. My soul tried to be free from his firm hands but I had to sleep there motionless as his prey. From that day he became my client. He comes every other day and pounces on my body."

They silenced for a few minutes. Vishnu could understand what mistakes he had done. He had also pounced on Muslim girls as a sexual predator. Tears dropped from both of their eyes. Before they could say further, the guard reminded them about the end of their meeting time. Anju wore back her saree. She, looking at Vishnu, finished her story.

"One day, Dipen came and told me about you. How brutally you killed old Muslim men and women, raped Muslim girls along with Dipen and others. It seemed a pride story for him. But I know how the victims suffer. I requested him to send me to you. I wanted to make you understand we are human. Stop killing us in the name of religion."

She, before leaving the cell, looked at him. She wanted to say more but restrained herself. 

"Goodbye, we won't be able to meet again. Tonight, I'm going to kill Dipen, the minister." She whispered into his left ear and left the place.

Vishnu, the convict 786, stared at her till she disappeared. He was dumb for a few minutes. His eyes got moistened. His heart filled with remorse. He lied on the floor again. But he could not sleep. He tossed the whole night. He could hear the screams of those Muslims whom he had killed and raped in the riot. He had been reluctant to die but he was eagerly waiting for his death now.