Chapter 9 Cuffed

My hands were cuffed, and the constable took me inside the police jeep. At that moment it felt like the scenes that we see on TV when the culprit gets arrested. But it was happening to me right now. Everything felt so distorted. I turned my face towards Debjit Bhai.

“Bhai why are they arresting me?” I whimpered and asked.

He tilted his head down, there was no response from him. Chhavi kept walking behind me and kept on requesting the officers to let me go. She also begged Debjit Bhai, but he didn’t utter a word. There was a silence to my soul like a falling leaf under frost. I felt a chill in my blood, coldness bringing the synapses of my brain to a standstill. I kept telling myself that everything will be alright. I reminded myself that I was good person, that I do good things, that I had a heart full of joy, but at the same time seeing my hands cuffed also gave me the feeling of complete obsoleteness. I started feeling weak, scared and helpless as there were already so many hardships in my life that I faced and was in the process of overcoming, but I couldn’t see any escape from this situation.

I was taken to the nearest police station and was imprisoned with the other culprits. I kept looking for Debjit Bhai, who should have arrived by now to tell them about my side of the accident. I kept asking the officer-in-charge, but they didn’t give any heed to my questions. I saw Chhavi, Utkarsh, and Aparna sitting outside the station, as they were not allowed to meet me. Eight hours had passed like this. I still couldn’t see Debjit Bhai anywhere.

That night felt darker and lonelier than usual, with neither the moon nor the stars to be seen from this confinement. The other culprits continued to mock me. They didn’t even let me sleep for a single second. At that point, all my hopes went towards Debjit Bhai, would he be able to get me out of this mess? What exactly had happened in there? What was the reason for my imprisonment?

After waiting for some time, I finally saw Debjit bhai. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“I know you have a lot of questions in your mind. But, I want to you to help me understand the situation first. What happened to you there? I can’t believe you could do that.”, he exclaimed as he came close towards my cell and sat next to it.

“Bhai, at that moment I lost control of myself and just,” I couldn’t find the right words and just grew quiet. I couldn’t explain how or why I did what I did to that guy.

“I understand, but I don’t think the court will, in their eyes a crime is a crime”, Bhai slowly got up, and was leaving when I called out to him told him.

“Bhai, I did kill the kidnapper but was a case of self- defense?”

“Self-defense, how did it happen?” Bhai confused by the statement asked.

“Yes bhai, I tried to save Chhavi from him. He was about to attack her when I got in between them.” I told him.

“Kidnapper? How did you that he was a kidnapper, when he wasn’t on to begin with,” Bhai told me as he explained to me what was actually going on.

“That person had come there to ask for your help in aiding his sister who was also kidnapped and was laying pulse less in the adjoining room. That help quickly and unknowingly turned into a fight, and it soon became a deadly one. Where, he ultimately lost his life.”

At first it didn’t seem believable. My mind was sent reeling back, as I struggled to process or comprehend what had actually happened there. My mind kept going back to that fight trying to see if there was any way the outcome could have been different, not that it would change anything now. I slowly began to accept all of it. There was no going back. I had to live by my choices and live with the outcome it brought.

Why does this keep on happening, every time something good happens to me I get something much worse. Life had become unexpectedly cruel to me, first dad got paralyzed, then Mom died, and now, there’s this legal battle. The world suddenly felt so small, and it almost felt like there was no more air left in it to breathe. “Everything has gone wrong, it has become more dreadful, there’s no way back, I’m ruined “. I cursed myself several times. “What else could I do?” I asked God “Why had it had to be me?

Life came had suddenly came to a standstill, but I still had to live. I had to go through with it for my loving sister. I wanted to keep her safe now.

“Bhai, Is Aparna and Utkarsh still outside?”, I asked “Yes Avinash,”

“Bhai, please send them in, if possible”,

“Sure, will do that, Avinash.” I wanted to talk with her one last time. After a few minutes, Utkarsh and Aparna came inside.

Aparna couldn’t stop her tears. She was heartbroken to see me like this. Utkarsh supported her

“I got to know everything Avi, I still can’t believe something like this can happen to you.”

“I don’t what happened to me man, I just couldn’t control myself and just punched him with the nail,” I told him as I closed my eyes and took a long breath.

“Bhaiya, why is this happening? First dad got paralyzed, then mom died and now you are stuck here because of something that you accidently did”. Aparna wasn’t able to consul herself. As she said these words, she slowly turned away from me.

“She is in pain, I know but Utkarsh take care of her, whatever happens to me don’t let her go on with it. Promise me you will be there with her and protect her like her brother.” I pleaded to him.

“I promise you bro, we are not only friends but also we are brothers. I’ll be by her and will also protect her.” Utkarsh promised me. I had faith in Utkarsh. That’s why I gave him the responsibility to protect her in every situation.

...

All statements were recorded, and documents were placed before the Honorable Judge. The arguments began with the prosecutor and the defense lawyer. All my family members were present in court. I got so sick feeling being handcuffed. And I could fell that I was been treated like a murderer. It was my mistake, and everything was against me. The prosecutor called Chhavi for the eye-witness confession. She was under tremendous pressure from her family, police officers to change the statement. But she spoke the truth, retelling everything that happen in a perfectly detailed view. She held her head high and proudly said the truth aloud. I was glad. Being a kind-hearted person, I always lived my life truthfully in every aspect. I was proud of her, even though she was nervous, she still spoke her heart out.

While she was delivering her testimonial, I prayed to God, “Whatever happens today just keep me safe.” The Judge, after going through all the papers, documents, and confessions, asked me.

“Do you plead guilty?”. I was convinced I was at fault, at some point or the other. I killed someone, and I accepted that. I pleaded guilty. Debjit Bhai told me that I must not plead guilty, so they could get a chance to take me out of here. But how far could I go? How could I have lived with the guilt? My Mom always told, to follow the path of honesty. I accepted it. I accepted my mistake. I didn’t know what consequences it may bring. But I had made my choice.

The Judge, after taking all the matter into consideration, pronounced his verdict. “The Trial court, after analyzing all the evidence on record, convicted me under Section 304 Indian Penal Court with the sentence of 5 years

“The High Court, after analyzing the evidence on record, has decided under Section 304 of the Indian Penal Court, sentence the accused to undergo Imprisonment for six years.”

I didn’t cared about anything at that moment. Maybe I mastered to put a fake smile on my face or perhaps not, or maybe I learned a style to cry silently. After the decision, everyone was crying. The most affected was my sister Aparna, but I assured her I would be back soon. “Six years might be a good break for me,” I sarcastically said to myself. Maybe I could come back stronger. In my parting words, I told my family and friends-

To Aparna- Take care of Dad, and try to fulfill Mom’s dream by becoming a Doctor.

To Utkarsh- Just three words. Take care of Aparna.

To Chhavi-Thanks for the genuine love you gave me; maybe our story ends here.

In that moment I thought, “Whatever plan God has made, he makes it all with a certain good fate in mind. And, sometimes we have to rebuild ourselves to come back stronger and better than before.”