“The Bleak Prospects of Justice”
Sardar Mengal
On February 13, 2020 grief and sorrows dominated Balochistan’s Southwestern city of Noshki. In the morning, a vehicle is carrying an armed gang. The gang roaming freely down the city and abruptly stops before a mud-walled house. One of the armed men opens fire and targets a young boy aged 22 years, a student of BS Zoology. The bullets sieve the chest of the victim. His mother cries come forward and holds her son. Her son takes his last, deep, and irregular breaths in her lap.
The public witnessed the tragic incident. The police are there. People call for the arrest of the killer but the police reject it saying that they can go nowhere. Who is the murdered young boy?
Samiullah Mengal was a BS student at UoB
Samiullah Mengal was a BS student at the University of Balochistan. He belonged to a humble family of Nushki. The cap of his brilliant educational career was full of feathers of excellence. His poor father is a laborer who raised his son as an icon of hope not only for him but for the entire nation. He emerged as a young leader with undeniable potentials. Soon, he became a symbol of social activism.
Keeping this picture of Sami Mengal in the background, it is not difficult to deem his social status and importance. On 15 Nov 2020, the commissioner Rakhshan Division called an open court. As part of his social responsibility, Samiullah Mengal recorded his complaint against drug dealers before the commissioner at Nushki, Balochistan.
Commissioner Rakhshan division ordered an inquiry against narcotics sale
The commissioner ordered an inquiry about the case. The drug dealers started using their covert and overt means to neutralize the crucial stance which had threatened the survival of their heinous crime. Moreover, it was the time when speaking out against drug trafficking and dealing was not anywhere close to the norm.
When every effort of drug dealers failed, they flocked to the home of Shaheed Samiullah Mengal and murdered the benchmark of courage and endurance, and escaped safely as narrated in the beginning.
The killing of Mengal was a major blow to peace-loving people
The tragic incident was a huge blow to the peace of the province in general and shattered the harmony in the district in particular. The escape of the killers in light of the day gave birth to very serious questions. It fuelled the unrest and fanned the flames of dissension. People took to the streets and a new chapter of rallies, lockdown strikes and social media outcry began. A wave of condemnation prevailed across the social and political spectrum.
It shook the slumbering conscience of the public. Holding the placards of " I am Samiullah Mengal young students took the sacred oath of eradicating drugs from society and calling for justice.
With every passing day, the uncertainty and urgency increased. Understanding the delicate grounds, the highest authorities of the province assured the mourners that the culprits would be brought to book immediately.
The young generation is concerned
The young generation is particularly concerned, conscious, and confident about their position in this struggle. The month of February has been attributed to Samiullah Mengal and his mission.
The great outcomes of the drug eradication mission are very encouraging, but the sad part of the story is still so even after a year. Where are the culprits? How did they escape safely? Will justice be served? If yes, then how much time it will require? If not, then who will correct these blind-spots? The questions which erupted on 13 Feb 2020 are still demanding answers.
With every passing moment, these questions increase and demand answers more vehemently. The bleak prospects of justice lie behind the heap of questions.
“The Bleak Prospects of Justice”
The author is student of Medical at King Edward College Lahore
He can be reached at [email protected]
