How much can you hate the person, whom your kid loved so much? How much can you be jealous of the love of your son’s life? How low can you stoop to make the person pay for her only one mistake – loving your son?
Recently, we came across a heartbreaking story of a woman, who was forced to spend 13 years in jail after she was falsely accused of her husband’s death. She did not know that marrying a man against his family’s wish would make her pay such a huge price. She not only lost 13 precious years of life but her kids as well. All because she was never accepted by her in-laws.
Now she has dedicated her life to Human Rights so that she can help innocent victims like her get justice. While sharing her heartbreaking story with HoB, she mentioned:
“Kunal and I got married against our family’s wishes; his family was affluent and I came from a middle class background. My mother-in-law was particularly unhappy–‘This marriage won’t last for long,’ she’d say. But we were in love. In the years to come, everyday fights between me and my mother-in-law became routine, even after Kunal and I had two children.”
But, hardly she knew that her life was about to take an ugly turn that would change things forever.
“Then, in 1999, our life took an unexpected turn. Kunal had given 4.5 lakhs to his friend, Roy, in order to set up a liquor shop, but they started having differences. I saw them arguing a few times. Then, one day, suddenly, Kunal went missing. That week, I’d gone to my parent’s place because Baba was ill, so my mother-in-law called to inform me, ‘It’s been 2 days, he still hasn’t come home.’ Terrified, I rushed back and contacted Roy but in vain; we lodged a missing person complaint. A week later, Roy came home and said, ‘Kunal has been murdered.’ I collapsed then and there; our sons were just 5 and 3! After, things spiraled out of control.”
Sharing her trauma, she further adds:
“I was called in to identify my husband’s body, but it was badly decomposed. And 2 days later, all the local newspapers carried the headline– ‘Love triangle: wife murders husband for another man.’ They’d accused me of having an affair with Roy and plotting to kill my husband with him! The police arrested me–I was tried by the media; there was no proper investigation.”
While she was tried by merciless media, her in-laws were plotting against her. She was heartbroken when her mother-in-law refused to tell the truth out of vengeance.
“I begged my mother-in-law to tell the truth, but she stayed mum. In fact, after 5 years of jail term, when I applied for bail, she objected and my plea was rejected. I spent 13 years of my life in prison–45 of us would share a tiny cell; the jailers hit us brutally. In 2005, my father passed away, but I wasn’t even allowed to attend his funeral. And I didn’t get to see my sons all through these years; my in-laws never let me meet them.”
Also Read: Living With An Abusive & Toxic Mother In Law? 5 Ways To Deal With Her
Adding further, she mentioned:
“Finally, on 16th April, 2013 I was released on bail and soon after, acquitted of all charges. The first thing I wanted to do was to hug my sons, but my mother-in-law refused– ‘They’re happy without you,’ she said. Heartbroken, I started rebuilding my life–I stayed with mom and taught kids at a local NGO–they reminded me of my sons. In 2014, after repeated attempts, my sons finally met me. They asked me, ‘Why did you kill dad?’ I tried explaining my side of the story, but they refused to listen; we haven’t spoken since.”
But, this brave woman refused to give up on her life. She found her life purpose in ensuring that innocent victims like her don’t rot in jails just because of lack of support.
“Around then, I came across a Human Rights law network–they fought for women like me; I finally found my true calling. In the last 5 years, I’ve helped 10 innocent victims get justice–each time one of them got out of jail, it felt as if I was getting a new life. Today, I’m the Assistant Director of the network. On some days, I think, ‘If Kunal were here, would he have let all this happen to me?’ and cry bitterly. But then I think, ‘Maybe God wanted me to go through this so that I could help other victims,’ and then I carry on with my job, invincibly.”
Also Read: 17 Best NGOs For Women Empowerment In India
At IFORHER, we are proud of this courageous soul for fighting her cruel life circumstances and finding life purpose in saving lives. After what happened to her, many may have lost hope in humanity, but how she chose to be a torch-bearer of humanity herself is quite inspiring! We salute this Real Hero!