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Memories of five young men shot by the Bombay police in Suleman Bakery still reverberate in the by-lanes of Mohammed Ali Road.
The bakery and a madrassa are adjacent to each other and can rarely forget the horror of the 1992-93 riots, after the Babri Masjid demolition.
For those awaiting justice all these years, there is a ray of hope. The special task force has filed a first information report against former police commissioner R D Tyagi.
Suleman bakery owner Abdul Satar Suleman Mithaiwala feels that the law has finally taken its own course.
Mithaiwala told rediff.com, "I firmly believe that justice will be delivered by God. The first information report is a due process of law, but has come after a long period. It cannot bring back the five young men I lost in the riots."
The five hailed from Uttar Pradesh. Three of them had families, one was just married and Shamshad Khan was the bakery manager.
Two were shot in the chest. Mithaiwala said, adding that "Shamshad was handsome and charming, and his face still revolves around my eyes. Eyewitness state that when he was shot his body flew on the other side of the bakery."
The government paid a compensation of Rs 2 lakh, as they were 'victims' of the riots.
The bakery, in a bylane, has a hectic schedule, but the presence of officers of the special task force brings back memories of the riots.
They have been frequently visiting the place, interrogating the owner and nearby residents.
Mithiawala says, "The lane to the bakery is so small that to carry an AK-47, as alleged by the police, one should be noticed by at least the workers. There was curfew from 08:00 hours IST, so how did the so-called terrorist enter the bakery? The incident can be termed as either intentional or accidental, on the part of the police. Five families have been left in the lurch. Who is to account for this?"
Mithaiwala denies that they were harassed by the police when Tyagi was commissioner.
He says, "We are into this business for 70 years. The third generation is managing the business now. We have no criminal record and are happily earning our livelihood. Many people have time and again asked me to file a court case against the police. But I firmly believe that God will do justice one day."
However, Tyagi told rediff.com, "Officers of special task force have not spoken to me before filing the FIR. We got information that there were some people on the roof of Suleman Bakery who were firing from a revolver, and not from AK-47s, as the police are alleging."
You may also want to seeSTF files FIR against Tyagi in 1993 Bombay riots case
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