Far away from the crowd, the fakir stood all by himself under a tree. His face was expressionless. His eyes were half shut but the instrument in his hand was playing to an unsung tune. ‘It’s all due to Sehmat Bi. Go, thank her,’ he said repeatedly. His words did not reach the crowd that was becoming more and more ecstatic and emotional. But the villagers wasted no time in grasping the truth. Sehmat was their saviour. She had descended from the heavens to give them respite from the terror they had lived in. She was to be the queen of Maler Kotla.
Epilogue
Gaurav Ghei and his wife Anjali were ordered to leave Pakistan soon after their arrest.
General Sayeed committed suicide instead of facing a court martial. He shot himself in the head inside his haveli.
Sarfraz Khan went missing for many months. His body was later fished out of a canal near Lahore.
Tejashwari Khan (Tej) passed away a few years after her daughter. Her remains were laid to rest next to her beloved daughter, Sehmat Khan.
Samar Khan quit the Indian Army prematurely and began working for an NGO, focusing on the development and holistic growth of underserved and underprivileged children, especially around Maler Kotla.
Abhinav, Aby, did not marry and continues to support his foster son, Samar, in fulfilling Sehmat’s dreams.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the following people:
My parents for their blessings.
Mr Ajay G. Piramal for being a solid pillar all through.
My family for being a great support.
Admiral S.M. Nanda for his book, The Man Who Bombed Karachi, A Memoir.
THE BEGINNING
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PENGUIN BOOKS
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This collection published 2018
Copyright © Harinder Sikka 2018
The moral right of the author has been asserted
Jacket images © Devangana Dash
ISBN 978-0-143-44230-1
This digital edition published in 2018.
e-ISBN: 978-9-353-05027-6
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
Calling Sehmat Page 18