Brutal

2

11:30 AM

Allahabad District and Sessions Court

There was an unusual rush of people outside the Court on this hot summer day. The yard outside the imposing structure was swarming with hordes of youths, school children and other protestors. Two police rapid action buses and a fire tender stood aligned with the compound wall to control any aggression from the mob. A perimeter of ten meters in front of the court entrance was created by armoured police force carrying lathis and tear gas canisters.

The air pulsated with anger. The entire place was echoing with vociferous chants of 'Hang the killers of humanity' and 'Enough crimes against women and children'. College youth and schoolchildren who had skipped their classes today were carrying banners with messages like 'Death penalty is justice' and 'Crime against women and Children – Tolerate no more'.

The OB van of Globe News was caught in the heavy crowd. The driver shook his head with astonishment as he tried to manoeuvre through. "Forget about parking. There is no place to stand here," he said. "And I can see the early signs of violence," he added, pointing at a group of youths holding an effigy of Nitin Tomar. They were carrying the flags of a political party.

"Park here," Dilip said, indicating a gap in the long lines of vehicles.

The driver frowned and said, "Won't it be too far for you guys? It's almost two hundred meters from the court gate."

"It's OK," Dilip said with a shrug. "We will walk from here. If the crowd turns violent, at least our van will be safe."

Prakash got down from the van. He held a microphone in his hand. Dilip followed him, carrying a bulky TV camera over his shoulder.

The heat outside made Prakash wince. More than the heat, it was the realization that he was back in the job he had started dreading. Beads of perspiration formed over his forehead. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

It took a few moments for him to absorb everything that was happening around – the tense atmosphere, the angry protestors and the wary policemen. It was not an ordinary scene. Not every day did people turn up in such large numbers for a hearing. It might have been a simple case, but it was surely one of the most anticipated ones in the country today.

The incident, a crime of shocking brutality, had occurred two months ago at the well-known Geetanjali Public School in Allahabad. That day, Nitin Tomar, a science teacher and now a figure hated far and wide across the country, massacred eleven school children in cold blood using a kitchen knife. Four more children were left maimed for life.

Most reports connected Nitin's actions to his depression, from a painful divorce a few months ago. He was furious after his wife won custody of their daughter.

The surprising element in this case was that he seemed to be perfectly alright a few hours before the crime. He was seen smiling and chatting with his fellow teachers in the school canteen. Nobody knew what transpired afterwards, which made him sneak in a sharp knife from the canteen kitchen and proceed towards Class IV-C. He entered the class to moans and protests from the little students telling him that his class was still half an hour away. He ignored them, closing the door and bolting all the latches tight. Before the children could grasp what was going on, Nitin took out his knife and stabbed two girls from the first desk. Aghast, a couple of kids ran towards the door. But, he cut them off before they could unlock it and butchered them like lambs. The remaining kids tried everything from praying and yelling to hiding behind their desks, but nothing was sufficient to stop this animal. Five minutes was what it took for the school security team to break the door and get in. In those five terrible minutes, he stabbed about nineteen students – some dying on the spot, some dying later in hospital. Only a few survived.