8220;I will kill them8221; 8212; Pinky Naik

NOVEMBER 14: This certainly wasn't Children's Day for Pinky 14 and Hardik 10. Around 4 pm on a day of uncertainities, buffeted by conc...

NOVEMBER 14: This certainly wasn8217;t Children8217;s Day for Pinky 14 and Hardik 10. Around 4 pm on a day of uncertainities, buffeted by concerned relatives who nevertheless crowded them in the KEM Hospital lobby, the two children were told that their Neeta Naik had given up her battle for life. Bereft of a father 8212; a paralytic Ashwin Naik has been in Tihar jail for xxx years 8212; the children tried their best to be stoic but then their composure crumbled.

8220;I will kill all those who killed my mother,8221; screamed Pinky to no one in particular. Hardik, a bit too young to comprehend the complexities of the situation, cried when he saw others around him cry. He was calm and tearful by turns. Neeta8217;s ageing mother Hemlata Jethwa was around for her grandchildren, consoling them in her hour of grief. 8220;You are my Neeta now, I will take care of you,8221; she said to a stricken Pinky. She had taken care of the children at her Dadar home since Monday afternoon when news of Neeta being shot came in.

8220;Pinky was really scared after what she saw. We were trying to tell her that everything would be alright but we ourselves were not sure of her condition,8221; says Neeta8217;s aunt. Others who came to the hospital were Neet8217;as brother Hitesh, Ashwin Naik8217;s father and Neeta8217;s sister-in-law Amar Naik8217;s wife Anjali. The family was there for the children but it couldn8217;t soften the blow.

Neeta8217;s body was to be handed over to the family around 8 pm after the autopsy. The postmortem was conducted at JJ Hospital from where the body was taken to her residence at NM Joshi Marg, Lower Parel. Family members said they would not wait till Wednesday morning to perform the last rites.

Pinky was sobbing away 8212; in grief and anger. Not fully aware of what was happening around him, Hardik started crying too. Before the death was conveyed to her, Pinky was constantly requesting people around her to bring back her mother. 8220;Your mother is uundergoing an operation and everything will be alright. We will take you to see your mother,8221; was the line she was fed through the morning and afternoon. When the news was broken to her in the hospital, Pinky was uncontrollable. So was her grandmother; she even fainted for a few minutes.