Despite all odds, parents of murdered Gurugram schoolboy determined to get justice

The victim’s father says he is thankful to have understanding bosses, who have given him a free hand to fight his battle.

The family of the eight-year-old boy who was murdered in a city school on September 8 last year is still running from pillar to post to ensure justice for the child. A year after the murder, the boy’s parents say they have not even crossed the first hurdle of the battle as the court trial is yet to begin.

The boy’s father said the accused showed no remorse for what he had done. (Getty Images)

“I now understand why people give up court battles halfway. It is not an easy task to fight a case from the lower court to the Supreme Court,” said the boy’s father, who works for an export house in Gurugram.

He says he is thankful to have understanding bosses, who have given him a free hand to fight the battle. “Sometimes, I have to take leave for more than 10 days in a month, but my team ensures I get paid on time,” he said.

Recalling the fateful day, he said he still regrets dropping his son at school.

“When people ask me how we have coped with the situation, I tell them that we have lost ourselves without our son. We know he is gone, forever, but still, we feel his presence at our home. My wife feels his presence in the kitchen and many a time, we feel his warm breath and his sweat while we are asleep at night,” he said.

When he misses his son, he goes to the terrace and looks at the sky. “I question God why he took my son away. Though I am strong enough to bear the silence that follows, I sometimes break down and cry,” he said.

The boy’s mother said it has been hard to come to terms with her son’s death. “I see him everywhere, each day. His clothes, lunchbox, stationery items — everything reminds me of him. From the day I conceived him until the day he died, I remember his each and every activity. The first time I felt him kick me during my pregnancy I was so happy and told everyone that I felt his presence. But now, he has left me with tears for all my life,” she said.

The father said his son’s friends never visited him after his death, fearing they might be asked to become a witness in the case. “Life feels so incomplete now,” the boy’s mother said, sobbing.

They say it is not easy for a middle-class family to fight a case at three courts simultaneously. “From emotional to financial issues, life has become very difficult for us. My wife and I have not had a sound sleep since the day of the incident,” the father said.

He said that when he and his wife went to the CBI headquarters to see the suspect, he showed no remorse. “We were enveloped in anxiety as we were prepared to see the suspect,” he said, adding he felt the boy had no idea of the pain and suffering he had caused.

He said he wants answers to the questions in his mind and the minds of many parents across the country. “When I watch him (the suspect) in court, I feel pity for him as his family is still behaving normally and assuring him that they will save him. Not for once has the family expressed sympathy or apologised,” said the father.

“We can never bring back the life that has been taken, and the juvenile responsible for his death must be held accountable,” he added.