Thanks Dr Singh, but we’ll wait and see

‘‘We thank him for thinking about us,’’ said Harbans, who was just 16 years old and two months pregnant when her husband was killed in the 1984 riots. ‘‘First, we will see what Manmohan Singh does. We don’t care whether it is a Congress or BJP government, we just want justice for those killed,’’ she said.

Hundreds of kilometres away, her wounds much fresher, Naseembanu Mohammad Khalifa, who lost two members of her family in Naroda-Patiya and had to leave her home, also heard Singh’s assurances. ‘‘The functioning of the judicial system in Gujarat, inordinate delay in court cases, these are all areas of concern,’’ Singh said at his first press conference as Prime Minister-designate.

Said Naseembanu: ‘‘The accused should be punished so that others will learn a lesson and people like me can return to their homes without fear.’’ Added Tanvir Jafri, son of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri who was burnt alive in the Gulbarga Society massacre: ‘‘Unfortunately such statements have been made before, but they don’t help.’’

Harbans, who lives in Tilak Vihar’s Widows’ Colony, a name that makes her seethe, points out that leaders like Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler—linked to their riots though later acquitted in court—have been re-elected as MPs.

‘‘We have suffered throughout our lives. The accused are still roaming around free,’’ said Pahunchi Kaur.

She adds that many of the children of women widowed during the riots have little schooling and no jobs. ‘‘My children don’t have a father. I was working throughout the day but there was no one to look after my son, who dropped out of school.’’