After 15 years, is this justice?: kin of Jaipur blast victims

“Her entire body was paralysed and she never woke up from the coma,” Sahu, 55, told The Indian Express on Wednesday, shortly after the Rajasthan High Court acquitted four men who were sentenced to death in 2019 in connection with the blasts.

The four men who were acquited by the Rajasthan HC on Wednesday. (PTI/file)

“At first, Sushila was admitted at the SMS Hospital and later she was brought home. She remained unconscious till her death four years later,” he said. “At times in the night, rats would bite her, and we would see blood marks in the morning but she didn’t have any sensation due to her injury.”

He said family members of those who died in the blasts felt devastated after the court verdict.

“After 15 years, is this justice? This is so wrong. We hoped we would get justice. And now we hear that they have been acquitted,” said Sahu, who owns a garment business in Jaipur.

“My wife had gone to the Hanuman temple at Chandpole with her sister when the blasts took place. Her sister too suffered injuries. Our family went through a very difficult time. She (Sushila) couldn’t even see our children’s wedding.”

At the time of the blast, Mehak, 6, and Diya, 3, daughters of Sachin Gupta, had gone along with two others to the old city area to get food.

“All four, including two of my daughters, lost their lives in the blast,” said Gupta, a businessman.

“In 2019, when we heard that the court had awarded the accused the death sentence, we felt a sense of justice. We went to courts to witness in hope of justice. We are disappointed today,” he said.

Ramesh Sharma said his elder brother, Chaman Lal Sharma, was delivering milk to a shop near Chandpole Hanuman temple when the blast took place. He died.

“My brother was the head of our family. It is wrong that those accused of the blast will walk free,” said Sharma.