Today is 26/11. And today is the day I choose to share what happened that day - how it changed my life and my political awareness. I was in there in Nariman Point - working at a law firm. Lived pretty close by in a working women's hostel. This is my story. A thread. (n/n)
I had a pretty regular day. Was working till around 8/8.30 PM. Left office and for a change took a route which went along the Trident hotel. I saw it was unusually deserted and there was a large hole that had been made into its entrance
A dog walking couple told me to hurry along as I passed Trident. They said they saw fire. I thought probably that's the reason why there were no guards outside. No traffic too. Didn't pay much attention and moved along. How was I to know that fully armed terrorists were inside?
About to reach my hostel when I received a call from my uncle asking me whether I was safe. I said I was and asked him why he thought I may not be safe. He said that he saw on tv there was some trouble going on down at Colaba causeway near Leopold restaurant. Some gang war.
I still hadn't connected any dots. I said I was at my hostel and was safe. There was a guard outside and I felt that was enough. Leopold was a fav hangout of mine and went there often with friends and colleagues. Inside the hostel, everyone glued to tv
The tv had myriad reports and images of the "gang war", when the news of the carnage at CST station broke. That's when sh*t started getting real. Anxious parents made calls and the phones of all the girls around me kept ringing. A lot of girls were yet to come back to the hostel
The warden swung into action. All the doors were shuttered, all windows were to be closed. She took a headcount and made us call the missing folks. Girls were still trickling in from outside. TV was on but on mute. Reports of a car blast came in from the suburbs
The panic was setting in real thick and fast. One girl who was the daughter of a high-ranking Naval officer got to know that her father was sending the Military Police officer to check on us and give us some security. That was a relief. Then we heard the dome at the Taj explode
Now no one could remain calm. There were close to 300 girls in a building near Mantralaya & MLA hostel and we still didn't safe. On the contrary, we felt we were a soft target. Someone started crying and that pretty much had a chain reaction. We could hear bullets being fired
TV was kept on. The attacks were happening all around us. We couldn't pull our eyes away from the screen. Everyone was super scared. Warden told us to huddle in rooms and to sleep on the floor. There was a chance of stray bullets entering the hostel. This was real.Scary.Horrible
I don't remember anyone having much dinner. There was the initial excitement which was now replaced with horror and anxiety. Like a flock of hens we huddled together. I don't think we got much sleep. No chance of it. The TV was eventually turned off at 1 AM. Calls were unceasing
TV was turned back on at 6 in the morning. The horror continued unabated. We were all numb. Few girls wanted to go home to their local guardians but Warden refused. The shutters remained closed. Her phone kept ringing and she kept answering. Assuring anxious parents
The TV never turned off after that moment. We remained in the hostel for 4 days. I think it ran out of food because we were close to 300 and eating all 3 meals there when the arrangements were there only for breakfast & dinner. We were all numb and hoping for a respite
This time was amply utilised by us when we discussed govt response. It was clear by then that this was Paxtan's doing. We were waiting for a war to be announced. But no such luck. There was a lot of hot air but no action. Countless people lost lives. We were emotionally scarred
We jumped at misfired engines and sudden sounds - who knew what was lurking in which corner. The famous "Mumbai" spirit is a hoax. People are numb now to horror. It took years for me to get over it. I still can't believe that our central govt did nothing - no retaliation
That was when I knew that there was no point in relying on this govt. We needed a change. I had read everything that there was to read on the subject. Discussions were happening all around me. It was crystal clear who the perps were. But our govt at the time did NOTHING
Had never felt more helpless, vulnerable and unsafe in my own country. The horror of terrorism became all too real for me. My blood boils when I read or come across terror sympathisers. There is nothing in my books that can ever forgive any terrorists. Living in fear is no joke
That's why when I come across the Modi govt's response to the Uri attack or the Pulwama attack, I feel happy and hopeful. We need not live in fear. I had full faith on our armed forces even around 26/11 and that continues. All that was missing was political will. Which Modiji has
I will always vote for Modiji. He may not be perfect. But he has given hope to a common citizen like me that I needn't feel scared and vulnerable. Needless to say, my faith in our armed forces is unshakeable. Will remain so
I hope the perps behind 26/11 are brought to justice. It will grant peace to all the countless souls who lost their lives. My most heartfelt shraddhanjali to all of them: 🙏 Om Shanti. Salute to our martyrs in the police force & armed forces 😔😢
It has been very painful to remember these occurrences. Can't stop crying. Can't even begin to imagine how those are feeling today - those who lost their loved ones
