18 Jul 2014

Jahanara








Jahanara was placed in the most insignificant corner of the jail  hospital. The poor sickly child was hardly ten or eleven years old. Her big belly did not suit her age nor her innocent baby appearance. She seemed totally unconscious and unconcerned  of her situation. If anybody asked her anything she just stared blankly and remained dumb. Sometimes  an expression of deep aversion mingled with acute horror and hatred could be noticed in her large eyes and on her silent face.


Her co-prisoners did not know anything about her, and were naturally inquisitive. What had Jahanara done? Was she a criminal or victim? What type of crime or injustice or heinous incident had made this child dumb and so apathetic! Why she did not feel hunger or thirst! If some inmate brought her due meal to her, she sat silently with the food in her hands, hardly ate and never uttered a word. Sometimes she laid down with her face downwards. Did she ever sleep! She neither spoke nor cried nor laughed. Sometimes she only looked at the sky through the locked up gates with same apathy. Gradually her belly was becoming bigger. After a few months all the signs of pregnancy came to light.


One mid-night she gave birth to her baby. Still this event could not stir her, she kept silent and completely unconcerned of the world around her. The new born cried  at top of its voice from hunger. Out of disgust the jail matron or warders rushed towards her with their bamboo sticks, "Give your breast and feed the baby at once or we will beat you." In spite of their shouting and beating nothing could move her. She seemed to have neither any attraction towards own her life nor any attachment for the baby.

One day Jahanara's parents came to see their daughter. Her father was a factory worker and mother worked as a maid servant. They brought some tidbits for her in keeping with their capacity. But she sat with the same vacant look. She did not notice any of those things or even look at her parents. They tried to encourage her, caressed her, tried to make her  speak. But all  in vain. Then her mother burst out in sobbing. Father described the story of their daughter's plight in a plaintive voice. In extreme pecuniary distress they had to send Jahanara to work as whole time maid in a rich family nearby, so that she could have her daily meal. They also thought that as a growing child she could have a safe shelter and some dresses to cover up her growing body.


 The owner of the house had a small family. There were only three people, a young couple and their sixty years old father. All was going well. After a few months one day the couple went  to watch a night show of a movie. The other part time servant and cook also left. Jahanara and the father, the owner of the house remained at home. After some time the old man ordered the poor child to serve a jug of drinking water to his room. She went there with  jug of water. The man order her to massage his head. Sitting beside the bed she was performing her task. Suddenly the man pulled her on the bed and started to seduce her. She was nearing her teenage and very innocent, still she sensed some danger and repeatedly begged him to let her go. But he became violent and forced her and mercilessly raped her.

When the young couple arrived, they found her unconscious and understood everything. They immediately took her to their slum and told her parents that their daughter had suddenly fallen sick. She needed complete bed rest and her parents care. The parents were scared and called their neighbours. The women  began to take care of poor child. Some of the neighbours assembled before their place to support the worried parents. Some went to call the local doctor.  After an hour a local doctor arrived. After examination, the doctor declared that girl was brutally raped and wrote his opinion on his pad and prescribed to take her to the hospital. He also advised them to lodge a report to the local police station.

The slum dwellers accompanied the parents to hospital. After admitting the child to the hospital some of them stayed there with the mother. Others went with the father to lodge a complain to local police station. Next day the police visited Jahanara in hospital and took her to the police station for interrogation. But five days latter,  when the case came for hearing to court,  all of them were completely at a loss to see that  Jahanara  was taken to jail custody as a victim and the culprit was released on bail. From their lawyer and the police they learnt that until it was  proved that the owner  had raped her , Jahanara would stay in the female ward of  jail as  victim of rape and the rapist would remain free on bail. The poor people were speechless with this ridiculous  provision of law.

So long other prisoners were listening to the story. Suddenly Hameda began sobbing. Hasina  explained, "This girl  was also brought in here  in similar a case two years back. The son of her village landlord cheated her. In the pretext of love he raped her, but did not marry her. She is suffering here and her rapist is moving freely. Her parents are very poor and  ignorant. They could not fight for her. The landlord bribed everybody to keep them quite." Jahanara's parents looked at Hameda with a sickly baby on her lap.

They became apprehensive at their daughter's fate, when they knew that many such girls were suffering from in similar cases. Still they consoled their daughter," Darling, do not get upset, please have your daily meal and sleep. One thing more, do not neglect the baby, for god sake, give him breast milk. The  lawyer told us, 'if the baby's blood matches with the rapist's blood, then he will get punishment.' We will get proper justice." Then the parents left. As soon as, they went, greedy warders and their henchmen took away everything which they  brought for their daughter.

Two days passed away, but Jahanara neither touched the baby nor take her own meal. She seemed to have no hope or interest in her own life or in the situation around her. Some times some of her co- inmates   collected some milk somehow and fed the baby. But one night the baby passed away. So her parents had to come. The Matron shouted at them," It's all your daughter's fault. she did not breastfeed her baby, and killed him". The father said in  hopeless voice, "Oh honey, what have you done? If the baby would be alive, that rascal, rapist could be punished."

Now Jahanara looked at her parents with full eyes. After so many days there was no apathy on her face. There was the confidence of a  grown up girl, who has the experience of ten months of a horrible life in a  jail custody,  of five days of a barbaric atmosphere in a police custody, and a brutal physical assault from a man at her grand father's age. Only a defying sarcastic smile came in the corner of her lips, as if to express disgust,  to declare,  "The  poor  people cannot get proper justice against crime so easily. That's why you  see so many girls suffering here for same reason as me. I have had enough of this nonsense. Now get me  out of this hell as soon as possible. "


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 The story was in in Bengali based on facts  and was published in 'BHABNA',  by CINI ASHA, March, 1995.

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