"Our sons aspire to become Police officers," wife of Intaz Ali who was killed in Mizoram's custody last year

Last year in November, Intaz Ali who used to live in the area adjecent to the border of Assam-Mizoram got lost after going out to get woods in the forest. Two days later, his mutilated body was recovered from Mizoram. His wife, two children and parents still cannot forget that shock. After getting the news that six policemen had been shot dead by the Mizo forces on Monday, Intaz Ali’s father Sahajuddin broke down in tears.

Intaz Ali’s father has poor eyesight, and since his son’s demise, he hasn’t been able to sleep properly. He can’t see well, he can’t sleep well after the death of his son. Looking at the two grandchildren who have lost their fathers and the daughter-in-law who has lost her husband, it seems that there is no end to this injustice. He broke down in tears on hearing the news of the deaths of six policemen in Assam, realising that Mizoram had not moved away from their mentality, but now has gone even a little further.

Speaking to the Barak Bulletin on Wednesday, he said that over the past few months, he had hoped that maybe at least some of his son’s killers would be punished eventually. But the way Mizoram has openly fired on the people of Assam, killing six Police personnel, has further diminished hopes of getting justice for his son.

He said, “The unjust misconduct on part of the Mizoram is solely responsible for the death of my son. He might have believed in someone’s word as an innocent man and they took him there and forced him to die after unspeakable torture. I can never forget that pain. Then when we see that some other parents have also lost their son to the violence of Mizoram, I feel like I’ve lost my own son once again. The incident that happened two days ago makes me feel childless again. I don’t know what kind of decision the government will take, but if there is a God, then one day Mizoram will have to pay the price for this injustice.”

Intaz Ali’s wife Raina Begum said that the emotional impact of her husband’s death was felt more on her two sons than on her. Her two sons dream of becoming police officers so that they can stand up to anyone who commits such crimes in the future. But after the Assam police officials were shot dead by the Mizo miscreants publicly on Monday, she’s now worried about the future of her sons.

She went on to say, “After the death of their father, my two sons Shaidul and Shaidur dreamed of becoming police. It is not possible now to say what the future holds for us, but since the dream is to become a policeman, it is likely to come true. But the way 6 policemen were shot dead by the Mizoram people on Monday, after that I’ve become even more worried about the future of my sons.”

English copy by Saurab Das