The Chained Freedom

　

A true story from the lost book of forgotten history.


"Sughra, you have a visitor." A policewomen shouted through the iron gate.


She was laying on the bench. During her time in captivity, she had become frail, but still she was beautiful. Her skin glowing and her hairs as black as raven. In seven years, no one had visited her. The announcement of company left her thinking. At that very moment, an elegant personality appeared behind the bars. The policewomen helped her to get inside. She was tall, young and as stunning as "Sughra" her self. She introduced herself soon after she entered.


"Assalam-u-Alaikum. I am Shabnam Zia, Khalid Zia's daughter and have studied your case very well . I have just started my career as a lawyer, and wanted to undertake the most challenging case. I wish to bring everyone to justice, including the high-ranks. I am willing to provide you justice.


"disappointment is my middle name. You cannot do any thing about it. You are offering me something that does not exist, justice."Sughra replied coldly. This was not enough to hold back shabnam. she kept on talking until she had convinced sughra to tell her story. Sughra closed her eyes and rummaged through her mind back to the days of migration. a flashback of the last few days in India filmed in her mind and tears emerged in her eyes, rolling down her cheek.


"The seeds of partition were sown long for independence. My father was a prominent figure of Pakistan movement and often he discuss political matters with my elder sister, Samina and me. One Friday, my father entered the house screaming with zeal, "Pakistan is born today". Immediately he went upstairs, announcing the good news. We could feel his heart jumping with unexplainable joy. Meanwhile, our cook shouted from below, "Sir I'm going for Friday prayers". Soon afterwards, when we were having our lunch, someone arrived at the door and announced that the Mosque had been attacked by the Sikhs and they had claimed the lives of many including our cook's. This came as a blow to all of us. tears of pain stung in Samina's and my eyes. The obsessive voice of our father broke the silence as he odered all of us to hide in the store-room.in the back-yard. He closed the door from outside and went to seal the front gate. soon afterwards we heared the agonising screams of our father. I tried to open the door but Samina held me back. After what seemed like an eon of complete silence, Sameena managed to open the door with an iron rod. Outside, we saw nothing but slaughtered bodies of our servants and dear father. We sat near his body and cried out tears of pain, silently. then , Sameena acted as the elder figure and took me upstairs. there, she locked the door and made a decision about the future. later, it was decided that we would go to our uncle's house. "I think that we should take all our jewellery and cash with us", Samina suggested. The discussion ended with our cash and jewellery packed up in a bag and us ready to leave. We travelled by night to our uncle's house. He was planning to go to Lahore on the 20th of August, 1947.


I was unable to believe that I was going to leave my hometown, Delhi. Samina was extremely depressed and wanted to throw herself on her death bed, only to find solace in her grief. We walk through the barren lands on foot. For the first night we stayed near a well for a while. Samina sat down beside me, massaging the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger, Not an hour would have passed when a few Sikhs attacked our caravan, killing all the males and raping some of the females, including my sister. My uncle hide me behind a large stone when I came out, I saw Samina for the last time, standing at the brink of the well. After that all I remember is my self running forward to stop her from jumping off. Then my life changed forever, as I was left alone in this world, to suffer.
Some people did manage to escape, along with me. When we crossed the border to Pakistan, I climbed a dune and took a last look at India. Turning around, I faced the land of Pakistan. Though it was quite similar, something was new, which did not escape my eyes; a flag, standing with glory, flowing with the wind, announcing the birth of a new state. The newly formed governments were unable to deal with such large numbers of emigrants and violence that had broken out on both sides of the border.


 In Pakistan, there were large-scale threats to the Hindus and the Sikhs who did not leave. The government tried its best to accommodate all the refugees; therefore, none Muslim minorities opted for Pakistan and decided to stay here. Some famous politician, including Sardar Naseem, whom i murdered, visited the refugees camps. Sardar Naseem, got me kidnapped and delivered to his house. He had planned to fulfill his sinful desires but I was not to be his victim. In my defence , I drove a knife in his chest, killing him at the spot.
When she had finished, tears were trickling out of her eyes. "don't cry!" Shabnab said, delicately. "Shabnam! You cannot imagine, I have been deceived by my own fate and this country also did not spare me . The Sikhs mudered my sister and father, Sughra tried to keep on but could not counter overwhelming feelings of her tears.


"Please, get a hold of yourself. You do not need to cry,"Shabnam tried to console her, being a kind hearted person. But she could not find anything that could possibly cheer up Sughra, so she he left her crying to herself.


Let the prosecution begin, the judge ordered. Immediately a prosecutor stood up and asked for permission for questioning Sughra. When it was granted he leaned towards her and asked,"Sughra, were you in your senses when you murdered Sardar Naseem Khan?"


"yes," Sughra replied firmly.


"that's all my lord! This woman has murdered an intellectual and famous politician of Pakistan, and a murder of a person is the murder of the whole humanity. Therefore, this woman should be hanged till death!" the prosecutor declared.


Suddenly, Sughra's blood rand cold. Her hair stood up on end and she could feel a large volume of adrenaline flushing through her veins. Just then, a female lawyer stood up before the prosecutor. She was none other than Shabnam.


"My lord! My worthy opponent is mentally torturing my client. I would like your permission to tell the truth as it is something still veiled", Shabnam replied to the prosecutor's declaration.


"Permission granted", the judge answered.


"My lord! The truth is that Mr. Sardar Naseem had tried to rape Sughra and in defence she murdered him. The post mortem reports states that their were signs of Sughra's nails on Sardar's chest. This reveals Sughra had no share in Sardar's evil intentions. My lord, I have also interviewed the kidnapper who is now in jail for a theft and he clearly states that Sardar Naseem had forced her into his house and in a locked room. This, he had also declared in the court. As far as I can see, these evidences prove Sughra's innocence", Shabnam defended Sughra.


"I object, you honour!" the prosecutor shouted.


"Objection overruled", the judge answered.


"My lord, my opponent is just trying to hinder justice. The truth is that this woman had migrated from Delhi to Pakistan; she had left everything she had", Shabnam now spoke in a loud voice, which kept on increasing amplitude, "My lord, this woman's sister was also raped by the Sikhs and she came to this land seeking safety but this country failed to provide even that! She is the daughter of M. Ibrahim Khan, who played a vital role in the Pakistan movement. She herself being well qualified, accompanied her father on various political events. Sardar Naseem on the other hand, always favoured united India. He used to blame the Quaid as the architect of the bloodiest migration along communal lines and my opponent is stating that this woman should be hanged to death as it was because of that we lost an important personality. She did the right thing, my lord, by murdering Sardar Naseem", she finished, breathing deeply.


After her speech, there was a spontaneous burst of applause. Everyone stood up and praised both Shabnam and Sughra.


" Oder,order!" the judge commanded, " the court will declare its judgement after three days, that is 16th of August, 1955. Until than, the court is dissmissed".


"After hearing and seeing akk the evidences, this court has come to the conclusion, according to the laws, set by the government, that Sughra is innocent. She is free to live and practice her duties as a Pakistani citizen, also the court apologieses for her time in jail. also she is free to say anythingshe would like to, here in everyone's presence", the judge declared his judgement on 16th of August,1955. As announced before. A sense of peace settled over her heart as she listened to the words that flew out of the judge's mouth. Now, it was her time to speak. She started, "I,only want to say that this Pakistan is not ideological state, which the Quaid had wanted it to be. We will have work hard to make this land as likely as the Quaid's vision. He had stated, "My guiding principle will be "justice" and "complete impatiality, and I am sure that with your support and co-operation, I can look forward to Pakistan becoming one of the greatest nations of the world".