Madhumita Shukla’s sister: I have spent most of my life fighting Amarmani. What’s another 20?

“I was the first in the family to see Madhu after the shooting. Her body was covered in blood. My hands turned bloody when I picked her up,” says Nidhi.

Under the Uttar Pradesh government’s 2018 remission policy, inmates sentenced to life for offences like murder are considered for premature release after they serve a term of 16 years without remission or 20 years with remission.

“Hum dar-dar bhatakte rahe, aur woh bina jail gaye hi choot gaya (I kept running from pillar to post, but Amarmani got released from jail without actually spending time in one),” says Nidhi, alleging that the couple spent most of their jail term in the private ward of Gorakhpur-based Baba Raghav Das Medical College on grounds of various illnesses from 2012 onwards. Despite their premature release from jail, the couple are yet to leave the hospital.

Nidhi Shukla holds a photo of her sister Madhumita Shukla at her house in Lakhimpur Kheri district’s Misha tola. A budding poet, Madhumita was shot dead at her Lucknow residence on May 9, 2003. Amarmani Tripathi and his wife Madhumani were convicted for her murder in 2007. (Express photo by Maulshree Seth)

Unzipping a suitcase full of papers, RTIs, letters and other documents related to Madhumita’s case, Nidhi says, “It took a four-year fight with the system and several RTIs, but I have proof that Amarmani and his wife spent their sentence at a medical college since 2012 and not in prison. I will file an appeal alleging contempt of court because the verdict mentions a prison sentence, not a lavish life in a private ward.”

Amarmani, his wife and the other accused were arrested only after the CBI started investigating Madhumita’s murder. Such was the clout wielded by Amarmani that he contested the 2007 Assembly elections from behind bars and won. In 2007, a CBI court in Uttarakhand convicted the couple and three others, including Amarmani’s nephew, for conspiring and killing Madhumita, who, Nidhi says, was pregnant at the time of her murder. In July 2012, the Uttarakhand High Court upheld the life term awarded by the CBI court to all four convicts. Amarmani and his wife were initially lodged in Haridwar jail after their conviction. Madhumani was transferred to Gorakhpur jail in 2008, followed by Amarmani in 2012, after other cases were lodged against them in Uttar Pradesh.

Former Uttar Pradesh minister Amarmani Tripathi (66) and his wife Madhumani (61).

‘Zinda laash’

Explaining her painful decision to pursue justice for her sister all by herself, Nidhi, who is guarded by two Uttar Pradesh policemen 24/7, says, “I have two elder brothers, but I have asked them to stay away from the case because they have families, children. Their life will be in danger if they get involved. I have also sent our 70-year-old mother to a relative’s house so I can concentrate on the case without fearing for her well-being.”

Amarmani has been living in the room above on the right at Gorakhpur’s Baba Raghav Das Medical College for more than two years; fellow murder convict and wife Madhumani has been in Room No. 16 for almost the same time. (Express file photo by Vishal Srivastava)

“Amarmani is very powerful. Had I not turned into a zinda laash (walking dead) the day I saw my sister’s body, the fear and paranoia would have killed me long ago. There have been threat calls and strangers trying to waylay me to scare me, but I never missed a single case hearing in Nainital. I would go there nearly four times a month, but would take different routes and modes of transport each time. I sold my property to fight the case. I even sold a car belonging to my father (a forest ranger who died when she was young) after someone pointed out that it would make it easier to spot me while I travelled for the hearings, ” Nidhi says.

“There was tremendous pressure (during the case hearing)… The most difficult part was linking Amarmani, Madhumani and the others to the crime. The CBI eventually managed to find that link,” said Virendra Adhikari, one of Nidhi’s advocates for the case, while speaking to The Indian Express.

However, Amarmani’s subsequent conviction failed to bring peace of mind to Nidhi. She says she would be filled with dread each year as August 15 (Independence Day) and January 26 (Republic Day) approached because “these days meant special remission, including early release, of prisoners”.

“This year, I heard that Amarmani was trying every trick in the book to ensure an early release. So I started writing letters (to President Droupadi Murmu and UP Governor Anandiben Patel) opposing his early release, citing an ongoing Supreme Court hearing in the matter and on grounds that Amarmani was misleading the authorities. I even shared evidence that he was never actually imprisoned,” she says, adding, “But ultimately, my fears came true. I have spent most of my life fighting Amarmani. What’s another 20 years?”

Though she says her zest for life and emotions died with Madhumita, Nidhi’s face lights up when she talks about her sister. “Madhu was good at everything — at studies, kushti (wrestling) and even poetry recitation.”

Nidhi Shukla in front of the UP Assembly in 2013, seeking the restoration of her family’s security. (Express file photo by Vishal Srivastava)

Talking about her first poetry recital at a local mela on October 24, 1995, Nidhi recalls how Madhumita was adamant on reciting a poem but their father was not convinced. “He gave in eventually. I still remember the poem she recited… Humein Math-Masjid Nahi, Pyar Chahiye (We don’t want a temple or mosque, we want love). The townspeople praised her oration for days,” she says fondly.

While her sister was making waves as a poet, Nidhi, who wanted to become a singer, was studying music at Bhatkhande Music Academy in Lucknow. However, she gave up music after Madhumita’s death. “People tell me to resume singing and to go out. If I start doing all that, who will fight the case? Woh itna bada admi hai, uske itne bade wakil, aur idhar akele hum (Amarmani is a very powerful man with powerful lawyers, while I am alone),” she says.

Nidhi says her family got her married to a sales manager nearly two years ago but she feels her husband is better off without her. “I cannot lead a normal married life. Then there is the constant threat to the life of my loved ones. So I have asked him to stay at his own house, while I live here, in the house made by my father. …I feel I have spoilt my husband’s life, but it is his decision in the end. For me, the case will always be a priority,” says Nidhi.

She adds, “Madhu was quick at Math, but I would take forever. It would irritate me then. We fought over clothes and over who was the better singer among us. Clothes and singing, nothing interests me any more. The fight for justice for Madhu is my life now.”