Boy who helped cops nab 2008 Delhi blasts culprits fears having to return to the streets

With no parents or external support, the young man who helped police nab the culprits of the 2008 Delhi blasts when he was a minor, stares at an uncertain future today. 

Rahul, who is 20-years-old now, was the prime witness to the 2008 Delhi serial bomb blasts case at the age of 11 and had helped police arrest the accused. His inputs had helped the cops draw sketches of the two men who had got off an auto-rickshaw and put something suspicious into a trash can which later blew up at Barakhamba Road.​

Rahul was awarded the President’s National Bravery Award (2007-08) and taken into government care. However, now he fears having to return to the streets from where he was picked up nine years ago, according to a report in The Hindu.

Though he was given some financial assistance to complete his schooling as part of the government scheme, Rahul cannot continue to stay at the children’s home as he has now turned an adult. Rahul is presently trying to clear his Class XII exam and find a job.

Rahul says that since he started his education late, he is struggling to keep up with his studies, but he desperately hopes that the government will not abandon him. “I am frightened. I wish I had words to explain the horrors of living on the streets,” he told the daily.

"I am currently living on ‘borrowed’ time at a centre run by Kailash Satyarthi, children’s rights and education advocate. But I can’t stay here forever. This is a home for rescued children. I need to find a job and shift out at least by the end of this month,” he says.