After the 26/11 trial was over, one would imagine the reporters covering it could breathe easy. This notion, I am afraid, is far from the truth.
After the 26/11 trial was over, one would imagine the reporters covering it could breathe easy. This notion, I am afraid, is far from the truth.
The most interesting story after a trial concludes is always the contents of the judgment. Very few courts have left copies for the media to read as judge Abhay Thipsay did in the Zaheera Shaikh case in 2006.
However, we knew no such system would be followed in this trial, and that we would have to chase the lawyers concerned. The only trustworthy contact we had was Khalid Azmi appearing for Faheem Ansari, who was eventually acquitted.
Another defence lawyer appearing for an acquitted accused had minted money earlier when he took Rs12,000 from each reporter for a photocopy of the 11,280-page charge sheet. Needless to say, many scribes ‘bought the charge sheet’.
I would call the court, Azmi, and the prosecutor every day to check if the judgment was ready. But honestly, getting hold of 1,588-pages of the judgment requires crafty management when we consider the number of media persons who want to get hold of it. Hence, it’s best to be prepared in advance.
We soon realised Monday was the D-day. At about 11.15am, I found a frail Yasmeen, Ansari’s wife, carrying almost 5kg of paper in her hand. I helped her. Yasmeen had strict instructions from Gulzar Azmi, general secretary of the Jamiat Ulama-e-Maharashtra, to get the judgment to their office first. The Jamiat had provided legal aid to Ansari.
After reaching the Jamiat office, at about 12.30, some of us reporters, along with a Jamiat man, went to a photocopying shop at Fort. By now, about 15 reporters had already contacted us, asking us to keep a copy for them, too. It took nearly four hours for my copy to be made.
I rushed to the office and scanned through the entire judgment. My bosses were expecting me to file at least 3-4 stories. But alas, for the hours of time and energy I spent, I could find only one story in the judgment. What a damp squib!
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