“It was all personal grudge and nothing else,” he alleges. Since then, Murtaza has been either attending different police stations or court proceedings.
“We don’t get enough time to be at home now, because we are either attending court trials in different districts or are at police station fulfilling useless formalities,” says an irritated Aqeel.
Aqeel is a salesman making a meager Rs 3000 a month. He says his absence from the shop affects his monthly salary. He loses Rs 120 for each day’s absence and the previous month he had to attend four court trials besides visits he was asked to pay in police stations.
Meanwhile two police buses stopped in the jam-packed court compound. The lawyer came in again. “I hope they get Ilyas this time, so that at least something will happen in this case.”
Unarmed policemen came down from these buses. What followed was a queue of mostly bearded young men, handcuffed. They are militants who are undergoing trial, said somebody from the crowd. “Though it is expected that government is hardly interested in solving our cases but still we always come here with a hope that they might get him (Ilyas) in the court,” says Aqeel. Ilyas hasn’t even once attended the trial. “We only come to attend these proceeding to know the further next date of hearing,” says Saqlain, “they are just ruining us.”
These are at least 1500 boys of all age groups who have to attend these trials, says Mir Shafaqat Hussain, a lawyer who is handling most of these cases. All these boys would be exonerated if the state takes these proceedings seriously, he claims, adding that they (Police) do not have enough proofs against these kids to prove them guilty. The clock stuck 2.30 in the afternoon. In the courtroom, their case name, Ilyas V/s Sta…te, is called again. The lawyer, “sir they didn’t get him…” The judge interrupted, “are all others present?” He is keenly looking into their papers, probably their earlier court proceedings, and then asks, “Who is Murtaza?
Murtaza steps forwards. “Where were you during last proceedings?” the judge asks. Murtaza says, “jenab my mother-in-law was ill and later died so I couldn’t be here.” The judge responds in a bit of a stern tone, “What is going on here, some child’s play?”
“For not taking these proceedings seriously, your bail orders stand cancelled. Till further orders you are detained in a local police station,” the judge orders.
“This place and its law should be placed in the wonders of the world! We are being detained for not attending a trial where nothing happens. This is ironic,” says Mudasir.
Mudasir makes a call to Murtaza’s place and tells them he cannot be home today as he has been detained for a few days. Apart from Murtaza’s detention nothing happened in this court proceeding. One feels if police had got Ilyas and Harris, the trial would have been different but the assumption may be wrong.
=Trial two. One, in which ten boys are involved and none of them is presently under detention. They are accused under section 436,148 and 149 of RPC. Most of them are below 18 years of age and all are present for the trial today. They were asked to be in the court at 11 AM and here they are.
They were picked up along with 27 other boys. Some of them were in primary schools, says Manzoor, 16. Manzoor is appearing for Matriculation board examination this year from a local private school. His school authorities are unaware of his court trial and Manzoor is hesitant to inform them. “What if they suspend me from the school? I do not want to appear in the exams as a private candidate,” Manzoor says. Last month he attended six court trials in different districts and “a policeman was saying another challan would be present against me soon, so then I have decided I will have to arrange a tent for myself and start living in these court compounds only,” the young student says jokingly. Manzoor has maintained a small diary to remember districts and dates of his court proceedings.
All of them were detained in local police stations and were harshly interrogated, they say. After beating them up (37 of them) badly, 27 were released. In this group of ten, six are below 18 years old and two among them are studying in tenth standard. Both of them have missed their schools today in order to attend their trials.
