‘Wanted to ensure people would not lose hope, that we could get justice…verdict shattered that’: Malegaon man who lost daughter in blast

75-year-old Nisar Bilal holds a photo of his 19-year-old son Azhar, who was among the six killed in the 2008 Malegaon blast. Azhar, a Quran student and aspiring fridge mechanic, had taken a different route home from the mosque when flying shrapnel from the bomb struck him. Since that day, Nisar has relentlessly followed the case, filing interventions in the case. (Express Photo: Zeeshan Shaikh)

Azhar, who was memorising the Quran to become a Hafiz and also worked as a fledgling refrigerator mechanic, was killed after he decided to take a detour from the local mosque on his way home. That change of route proved fatal, as flying shrapnel from the bomb impaled his body, killing him on the spot.

It was Bilal who had filed multiple interventions in various courts after bail was granted to the 11 accused initially booked by the Maharashtra ATS. Over the years, he remained one of the few bereaved family members who kept track of the legal proceedings and made multiple trips to Mumbai to follow the case.

“My intent as an intervener in this case was to ensure that people in our city would not lose hope, that we could still get justice, if not today, then hopefully tomorrow. Today’s verdict has shattered that conviction,” Bilal, who is hearing impaired, said.

Another persistent activist is Liyakat Shaikh, 67, the father of the youngest victim of the blast, 10-year-old Farheen Shaikh, who had stepped out to buy snacks. Over the last two decades, Shaikh has made numerous trips to Mumbai and participated in countless sit-ins seeking justice for his daughter.

67-year-old Liyakat Shaikh, father of 10-year-old Farheen, the youngest victim of the 2008 Malegaon blast, stands holding her photograph. Farheen had stepped out to buy snacks when the bomb went off, cutting short her young life. In the years since, Shaikh has travelked repeatedly to Mumbai seeking justice for his daughter. (Express Photo: Zeeshan Shaikh)

Known to be welcoming to all visiting journalists, the rugged former driver has lost nearly a quarter of his body weight following open-heart surgery last year. The need for closure is what prompted the Shaikh family to move away from their old residence in Nayapura, just a stone’s throw from the blast site that claimed their daughter.

Surrounded by his young granddaughters, Liyakat said the verdict has left him heartbroken. “The news has made us despondent. I am at the fag end of my life. With decisions like these, I sometimes feel I will never find peace,” said Liyakat Shaikh.

While Shaikh and Bilal were deeply invested in the case, other families accepted the loss they had suffered two decades ago as fate and prioritised daily survival.

One such person is Rehan Shaikh, 38, whose father, 42-year-old Shaikh Rafiq Brace, was a blast victim. Rehan said that the void left by his father’s absence and his mother’s illness forced him to start working early. Now a bus conductor on the Malegaon-Mumbai-Malegaon route, Rehan says his carefree life was overturned by his father’s death, who was killed while stepping out to eat paan after dinner.

38-year-old Rehan Shaikh, who lost his father Shaikh Rafiq in the 2008 Malegaon blast, now drives a bus on the Malegaon-Mumbai route. His father, a driver, was killed at 42 while stepping out to eat a paan after dinner. Rehan says the blast not only took away his father but also his childhood, forcing him to start working early to support his mother and grandfather sitting in the background. (Express Photo: Zeeshan Shaikh)

“Relatives abandoned us, and I had to care for my ailing mother and maternal grandparents after my father’s death. I barely had time to follow the case,” Rehan said.

Another affected family was that of 23-year-old Irfan Khan, an auto driver who was also killed in the blast. His uncle, Usman Khan, who runs a power loom, said that while Irfan’s loss had devastated the family, survival took precedence.

Usman Khan, a powerloom worker, remembers his 23-year-old nephew Irfan Khan, an auto driver who succumbed to injuries two days after the 2008 Malegaon blast. “His death shattered our family,” he says. While the family couldn’t follow the trial closely, the recent verdict has left them disheartened. “We would, of course, want those responsible to suffer,” he adds, reflecting the quiet anguish that still lingers. (Express Photo: Zeeshan Shaikh)

“My nephew died after two days of agony. Of course, we want those responsible to suffer for what they did. We may not have followed the trial every day, but the verdict has left us deeply disheartened,” said Usman Khan.

The same goes for the family of the oldest victim, 60-year-old Harun Shah, who, despite his age, continued working as a labourer. Two decades later, his son and grandsons make a living selling sandwiches outside one of Malegaon’s biggest schools. The need to survive saw then-14-year-old Aamin Shah care for his injured grandfather while his father Hussain worked as a handyman.

Hussain Shah and his son Aamin Shah, the son and grandson of 60-year-old Harun Shah—the oldest victim of the 2008 Malegaon blasts—who succumbed to his burn injuries 12 days after the attack. Aamin recalls the trauma of caring for his grandfather through excruciating pain. (Express Photo: Zeeshan Shaikh)

“My grandfather died in agony. Except for a small patch covered by his beard, his entire body was burned. I actually fell ill on the 12th day due to the nauseating smell of burned skin while taking care of him. I had hoped those responsible for this would be brought to justice,” said Aamin.

Meanwhile, Hussain had a message for the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for making the main accused, Pragya Singh Thakur, an MP. “The PM likes to portray an image that we Indians can lead the world in setting a moral code. If I knew English, I would have written him a letter asking why he made the woman responsible for the suffering and deaths of so many people a Member of Parliament, a privilege few receive,” said Hussain.