2006 Mumbai Train Blasts Case: Acquitted School Teacher Rallies For All 'Innocent Prisoners'
Urdu satirist Mushtaq Ahmad Yusufisurvived several dictatorial regimes in Pakistan without compromising on his wit and humour. Manypeople find solace in his writings and get inspired to face the toughest phasesof their lives with a determined heart and a smiling face. Reading Yusufi,while being subjected to physical and mental torture by the sleuths of Mumbai(Anti-Terrorism Squad) ATS, has perhaps kept the hope and resolve alive in Abdul Wahid Sheikh, one of the 13 accused in 2006 Mumbai blasts case.
At least 209 people were killed and more than 700 hundred were officially declared injured in a series of seven blasts that took place in Mumbai Suburban Railway on July 11, 2006.?
Abdul Wahid was cleared of all theterror charges and released in 2015 after the Mumbai ATS failed to produce any evidence of his involvement in the deadly bombings. He, however, believes that other accused - who were convicted by the same court - are also innocentand have been framed in the case. In his book, ¡®Begunah Qaidi¡¯ ¨C whichreveals the entire investigation of the case from an accused¡¯s perspective¨C first released in Urdu and Hindi, Wahid recalls what the accused had to face in the case. It talks about how the proofs were fabricated to suit the narrative of the security agencies.?
Thisbook contains several details on how some professionals like lawyers anddoctors work closely with the ATS to forge evidence to build up a particularcase against anyone.?The 504-page book is now available in English as ¡®Innocent Prisoners¡¯.
The book also covers case studies of German Bakery blasts 2010, Malegaon Blasts 2006, Aurangabad Arms Haul case 2006, Akshardham attack 2002 and the ¡®Indian Mujahideen¡¯ plank used by the security agencies.
Wahid spoke to Indiatimes about hisbook, his life in and outside the jail, and his efforts to ensure that other innocent prisoners come out ofjail and live as a free citizen of the country.
¡®More innocent than me¡¯
Wahid,who had to spend more than nine years of his life in Mumbai¡¯s Arthur Road Jail,says that others, who are still in jail in this particular case, are the victims of the Mumbai ATS that was working under pressure to solve the case.
¡°Youwill be writing about me and my story, that¡¯s not enough. There are others whohave been framed in the case like me. But they too are innocent. More innocentthan me,¡± pleads Wahid.
Hewas first arrested in 2001 when the Students¡¯ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI)was banned by the government and many of its members were nabbed by thesecurity agencies on various terror charges. Wahid was working as a primaryschool teacher at Mumbai¡¯s Anjuman Islam School. His was reinstated after getting a clean-chit in the case.?
¡°Theybooked me as a SIMI member under the UAPA, but couldn¡¯t find anything againstme. In 2003, I got married and started a new life with a scar of being arrestedon terror charges. However, my wife supported me all the while. When I waspicked up in 2006 after the blasts, she was the one who informed every one,therefore, the police could not plant fake evidence at my home,¡± he recalls.
In September 2015, court found twelve people guilty for the blast. In its 1839-page verdict, the court awarded five of these convicts the death sentence, and the rest were handed life terms. Only Wahid was let off.
¡°Otherscould not understand the intentions of the police initially, they thought it was just aninterrogation. Meanwhile, police planted false proofs against them, whichproved that they were guilty. But police know very well what they have done toall of us,¡± says Wahid, adding that it was easy for the police to pick thembecause they had their names in police records. They had nothing to do withthe train blasts, he reiterated.
"I am out, that's fine, but a part of me is still languishing in jail with the eleven accused, who are also innocent."
How Advocate Shahid Azmi helpeddisseminating the message
Theidea of writing a book didn¡¯t come to Wahid all of a sudden. He had been contributingarticles to Urdu dailies on current issues.
¡°Evenwhen I was in jail, I used to write for Urdu newspapers. I am thankful thatthey published my work at that time. In 2007, we thought of making an annualreport of what the ATS was doing in the case. We did it for the nest two yearsand were forced to stop it in 2009,¡± he says.
¡°Lateadvocate Shahid Azmi used to translate our reports in English and share it withhuman rights activists and lawyers. Police used to snatch and destroy someparts of it. We had to stop doing this in 2009, but the idea of writing a bookcame during that time. I wanted it to be a document for all those who are thevictims of this system.¡±
Azmi was assassinated by a gunmen at his office in Mumbai in February 2010.
When Mumbai ATS explained its logic
¡°Youare Muslims, Muslims support Pakistan, Pakistan sends RDX, RDX can only be usedby Muslims, Hindus can¡¯t carry out blasts in India.¡±?
Wahid says that the MumbaiATS had only presented this explanation, whenever they were asked about the reasons formaking the 13 people accused in this case.
¡°Itis clear that we were targeted because of our Muslim identity. The majorityof police officers we have come across believe that Muslims are responsible for terrorist activities. I have learntit during my stay in jail. If you are a Muslim, you will be a scapegoat,¡±laments Wahid.
Whenasked if he ever thought of giving up his religious identity because of whichhe was targeted, he replied, ¡°Never, the realisation that we were targetedbecause of our religious identity brought us closer to our faith. We never stoppedpraying. It gave us strength to withstand all the atrocities.¡±
Disappointment with judiciary
Despitebeing let off by the court, Wahid feels that judiciary is not doing its workproperly. He says that if the judiciary works in without preconceived notions, security agencies can¡¯tfake the proofs easily.
¡°Judiciaryis meant for justice, not for toeing the dominant politics. Over the years wehave seen that many cases are decided to suit the dominant political and security narrative. It breaks my heart to see judiciary behaving in such away. It has?resulted in injustice for many innocent people,¡± he says.
Prose, poetry and hopes of better times
Whilesuffering mental and physical torture, Wahid says, he did not give up on smallmoments of joy with inmates as they all knew they were innocent and were hopingto come out of prison sooner rather than later.
¡°Wheneverwe were not interrogated or beaten up, we would sit and read poetry byMirza Ghalib, Faiz Ahmad Faiz and Iqbal. We would recite romantic poetry too.That made us forget our mental and physical scars,¡± he says.
¡°Iam a huge fan of humourist Mushtaq Ahmad Yusufi. I read his four books while Iwas in jail. We all used to read and discuss what he has written.¡±? ??
Wahid hopes that like him, other innocent prisoners across the country will get justice and their misery will end soon.
"I have travelled across India with my book. I tell people our stories. I know others are not guilty, police have told us privately that they are innocent. One day, i hope and pray, they will also be released."??
