Tareekh pe tareekh

I reached the court at around 10:30 am with my summons. The name plate on the very first courtroom announced 'Magistrate Chetna Singh'. I checked the list of cases to be heard today and found the particular case 'State vs Sunil' somewhere midway in the list. I entered and talked to the constable standing near the witness box. He asked me my name and browsed through the list of witnesses. He told me that my name had already been called out. But he asked me to wait saying that my testimony could still take place since the file was still there on the desk. I took my place in the third row of chairs opposite the magistrate.

After around an hour, the policeman standing with the judge called out my name. As I appeared in front of the judge, the other policeman asked me to sit on a chair and first read my statement. My statement? But I haven't given any statement as of now. They handed me the two-page statement, and asked me to go through it.

FIR 8/10, State vs Sunil, PS Rajokri, 16 Jan 2010

I, Vijeta Dahiya, whose address is 158/1/23 Rohini, New Delhi, was coming from my office on 13th Jan 2010 on my bike (registration number. DL8S NB 1040) at 5:38 PM, when I saw Sunil Kumar Mishra driving carelessly at high speed on his bike (Regn No......). He hit an old man named Jogender Singh crossing the road at Rajokri flyover near Bansal farmhouse and thus causing him to be severly injured. I called the police on my cellphone 9999676337 and reported the matter.

..............

I went to the police station and filed my statement. I went to the location with the police and helped them draw a map of the accident site.

.............

I went to Patiala House court to give my testimony for the same......the accused Sunil had a handkerchief tied on his face....When the police encountered him, he ran away.......

....................

I read the statement written in illegible handwriting and was stunned. A policeman standing behind me suddenly cornered me introducing himself as A.S.I. Dharmpal and tries to pacify me saying, "Don't worry. We had taken your statement on phone. Remember? I had talked to you." I protested saying that I remembered receiving a call from the police station but I can't remember saying any of this. He requested me to come outside the courtroom.

"See. You had helped the police. So we didn't want to trouble such a nice guy. I could have very well called you to the police station but I thought better to talk to you on the phone and write it myself for your convenience. Don't worry, it's nothing. You just have to face the judge for a moment and tell her that all this had happened." He tries to make me cram the bike number of the accused, the dates, the name of the court where I gave my virtual testimony. I spotted the word 'naksha' and asked him what was this map thing. He turned a few pages in the file and showed me a map in which the accident site is marked wrongly. I had half a mind to shout on him, but I realized that it was no use arguing with him about it. I told him not to worry and that I would say it the way he says, and made up my mind to show my agitation and speak the truth in front of the judge.

"Your honour, I am flabbergasted seeing this paper which they call my statement. How could they even dare to commit this illegal and unethical act? I am filled with indignation. Am I some bloody illiterate that they would write a fabricated statement in my name without my knowledge, submit a photocopy to the court, ask me to read and sign it and testify to the court about its truth? Well, let me tell you the truth, your honour.

I was coming from my Ranbaxy office on my bike when I suddenly saw people gathering about 100 m ahead of me, at the starting of Rajokri flyover. I stopped m bike to see an old man lying on the road injured. I helped the old man to get up and got some water from a nearby shop for him to drink and to wash his face. The guy whose motorcycle hit him also was present. The people who had witnessed the accident unanimously declared the old man's fault in it. Even without asking anyone, it was evident though common sense. The old man was crossing the road from where the flyover begins (and not the zebracrossing at the middle of flyover, as these policemen have marked in the statement map). One of the hot-blooded guys went to the extent of scolding the old man for not staying inside his house, and walking carelessly on the roads creating problem for others by getting hit.

On being asked by me, the old man was unable to bring to his mind any of his relatives' cellphone number. If we would have seated him on our any of our bikes to take him to the hospital, we feared that he might fall down due to weakness and mild trauma. So I had no option but to call the police and ask them to take him to the hospital. The PCR arrived after about 10 min and took the old man and the motorcyclist with them. I went to a nearby paanwala, smoked a cigarette and left for home. 

I received a call from the police a few weeks later, and explained my inability to come to the police station. Moreover, I told them that I was not fit to be a witness since I had not actually witnessed the accident and was there only in its aftermath. Still the policeman had persisted that I should testify claiming the motorcyclist's fault in it so that the old man gets some money. I had opposed saying that I had my sympathy with the injured old man but that doesn't mean that I would help in proving an innocent guy to be guilty. The policeman had muttered something that it's ok, and I must not worry, and had hung up.

I received the summons a month ago. Some people suggested to me to not to worry myself. But on the basis of that phone call, I had surmised that the police were planning to entrap the guy, and if my tesimony could serve to help him, then I felt that I should come to the court, otherwise how could I expect any help from someone else when I would need it. So I came. But here I found the matter to be quite different.

I have never been to the Patiala house court, leave alone my testifying there. I never went to the accident site with them to draw a map. I have never filed a statement in the police station. Stopping to reflect at it, had the old man been 2 min late, then considering how he jumped over the flyover railing to cross the road, then he would have been hit by my bike. If anyone else would have testified unnecessarily against me, how bad would I have felt? Why should I testify against this man? I have nothing against any of the two parties, not knowing any of them personally.

Stopping my bike to help them, showing concern to call the police to take him to the hospital, today coming to Saket from Rohini, wasting my money, energy and time - all this for what? To entrap an innocent guy? How is that going to benefit me? However, it would cause the accused to pay punitive damages and might have some miscellaneous harmful implications on being proved guilty."

My mind involuntarily conjures this speech while I am waiting for my turn. I also have visions of me thumping the table with my hand and yelling, "tareekh pe tareekh, tareekh pe tareekh. Ye kanoon andha ho gaya hai my lord. Aap jaise jawan log hi ab iski aakhiri ummeed hai. Is begunah ko insaf do.", the judge scolding that policeman and punishing him for it, asking the people to stand up and clap for me for my courteous help to the law in agreeing to be the witness and the courage in slamming the truth in the face of these corrupt cops thus helping an innocent guy.

Before my visions could stretch further to my photo being published in the paper, the policeman came and sat near me. He smiled slyly, repeating at brief intervals at least 10 times the same thing, "We did it for your convenience, because you helped us......this is his bike number, please remember it...Bansal farmhouse, Rajokri flyover.....13th, 5:38 pm...rash and careless driving.......16th, police station, statment, accident site........27th, patiala house court, your testimony....." I didn't understand why he was repeating it over and over to me and driving me mad, when I had told him that it's fine. Probably he was nervous. He kept on flattering me calling me a cooperative and considerate guy in helping the police, and then showing his concern in my convenience. Then he said that whatever money I had spent in coming down to the court, he would get that fare reimbursed.

Then he went on to tell me that the accused had not come to the court in the morning, and that he is fugitive. The matters became more complex with the fact that they had not been able to locate the old man. He showed me his address - Jogender Singh S/O ..........., 4/213, Purana Kanpur, near police station, Nawabganj, Pin code...., and remarked that the address was insufficient to locate him. I asked him if they had at least tried to find the address to which he casually replied that who would bother to go to Kanpur. It was incomprehensible to me that if the old man had not filed a complaint, then why were they causing such trouble for the accused. Considering that many a times, when people want to submit an FIR (from my personal experience as well), they dissuade them from doing so, and in this case, there was no complaint against him, and still they were arranging a false testimony against him - for what? Since they had not located the old man, this was obviously not to help him. The case has been continuing for the past one and half years even when there was neither a complaint against the accused nor any real testimony against him.

I had to sit there for hours on end. I felt immensely hungry and told the assisting constable that I would be back in 5 min after having some snacks, but he stopped me from going saying that I must keep waiting here itself since my name could be called out any time. It was getting too harrasing and boring for me. In a casual conversation with a guy sitting in adjacent chair, who had come to collect his cellphone seized because of driving in a drunk state, he told me that these are not good times, and I did a mistake in being involved. "These are not the times to help anyone." I had nothing to say to prove him wrong, and consoled myself thinking that when my statement today would serve in uncovering a lie and helping Sunil, it would be worth it. So I waited and waited until at 1:30 pm, the judge left for lunch. They asked me to go and have some lunch if I wanted and to come back by 2:00 pm. Well, I came back at 2:00 pm hoping that the very first turn now would be mine. But another after another case kept coming up. I had no clue what was happening. Finally at 3:30 pm, they called out 'Sunil Kumar Mishra". They knew well that he was not there, but still for the sake of formality, another cop shouted it outside the courtroom for 'Sunil Kumar Mishra". Obviously, no answer came and the conclusion was that he was absent. The magistrate would not even look at me, maintaining her high position, and told the assisting constable to announce the next date to be 16th august.

I was taken aback. I told him that at least I could give my statement. "I have been waiting for the whole day. It would take hardly 5 min."

He explained that since the accused was not there, it was not possible.

I felt stupified. "But you knew that the accused is not here. Why could you not tell me this thing in the morning itself?"

"No, because the court functions until 5 pm. So we were supposed to wait for him until then."

This was so irritating. "Come on, if he didn't appear in the morning, how would he appear now suddenly, by some magic or something? And I was asked to sit and wait there just in the blind hope that he would come?" I lashed out my anger on him.

He motioned with his hand. "Please go. This is not the time to argue. Come on 16th august when both the parties are here."

"But I might not be in Delhi on the 16th of august. Please see if they could take my testimony now."

"When you get the warning for not being able to appear in court, please mention the reason that time."

I stepped outside the courtroom dejectedly. The most harrasing day of my life. Do they expect the people not to go out of the way as concerned citizens and good humans to help the law, or do they expect them to accept this harrasment, be so vella as to appear in the courtroom on any date mentioned in the summon and waste your whole day there? Sadly and unfortunately, I am forced to accept that guy's words, "Kisi ke pachde mein mat pado. Aaj kal kisi ki help karne ka time nahi hai, ab kahan achhai ka zamana raha". I decide that from now on, I am never going to get into anyone's affairs, especially the legal ones, because it would not help in changing the system or helping anyone, rather it would just serve to be an instrument of harrasment for me. I speak to Suneel in my mind, "Sorry friend, please pay them whatever money they ask you to pay. I tried enough but I can't help you, because I can't take this intolerable nonsense. anymore." Disappointed with the police, the law, the system, I walked back towards home.