New Delhi, Apr 30 (PTI) Every now and then Tarun Preet Singh harks back to the ill-fated day in 1997 when he had a brush with death and lost his two friends in a police shootout in central Delhi’s Connaught Place.
Singh, who was in his early 20s then, was shot seven times, underwent surgery and spent the next five years recovering from his injuries. He was forced to drop out of school.
Twenty-five years on, a shrapnel lodged in his head and slight disability in his right hand are constant reminders of the day when his life changed forever.
“I could have done so much with my life if I had not got entangled in the shootout. My life would have been completely different,” Singh told PTI on Saturday, ruing the loss of his “precious” youth.
He said the after-effects of his injuries prevent him from leading a normal life. He often gets headaches and winters are particularly difficult.
“I try to live a normal life but my injuries never let me do it. I cannot do heavy work because of the injuries and doctors have asked me to not take stress,” he said.
“The incident created several roadblocks in my path. I somehow manage my household expenses. Life is difficult,” he added.
Now a father of two, Singh works in a cloth shop and earns a meagre Rs 8,000 per month. His wife also works at a local hospital to support the family and earns Rs 3,000 per month. The family lives in a rented accommodation.
Singh and his two friends were travelling in a car on March 31, 1997, and had stopped at Barakhamba Road near Connaught Place when they came under indiscriminate firing from the Delhi Police. While Singh survived, his friends died on the spot.
Later, 10 police officials were convicted in the criminal case and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Recently, a ray of hope appeared for Singh and his family.
The Delhi High Court, in an order dated April 26, directed the Centre to pay Singh a compensation of Rs 15 lakh along with an interest of 8 per cent per annum from the date of the shootout.
“Injury caused due to the state action and that too one where the police officials were convicted of criminal offences and not some inaction or negligence, need(s) to be considered at a higher standard as compared to those of ordinary cases of negligence and inaction,” the court said in its order on a petition filed by Singh.
The court also awarded a sum of Rs 2 lakh as litigation costs to Singh.
Singh had filed the petition in December 1998 seeking compensation of Rs 1 crore for the misdeeds of the law enforcing agency and the violation of the fundamental right to life and liberty as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
Though Singh did not get what he wanted, he is relieved to have got something.
“The lost years will not come back but yes, this is something. It will help me improve the lives of my children,” he said. PTI VA VA DIV DIV
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