Saturday, June 10, 2006
Rajeev Goswami's mother pays a visit
NEW DELHI: Agitating doctors and students at AIIMS had an unexpected visitor on Wednesday afternoon who had come all the way from Michigan to support their cause - Nandrani Goswami, the mother of Rajeev Goswami.
Rajeev had been on a hunger strike at Deshbandhu College for 11 days, before he became the face of the anti-Mandal agitation in the 1990s by attempting to immolate himself.
Nandrani, who now stays with her daughter at Michigan, told the medicos: "That time has come again when you students need to stand up and protest against reservation.
I have come here to support you. You must continue the agitation, but remember never to take an extreme step like suicide."
She broke down as she said, "My son gave his life for this. Mera baccha us din se theek nahi raha. Is aarakshan ke peeche usne jaan de di. (He never recovered after the immolation bid)."
Rajeev died of multi-organ failure in 2004. Added Rajeev's niece Dolly: "Rajeev's father has been calling up and asking us to repeatedly take her to AIIMS. She came to India last week, but has been unwell ever since."
Nandrani could not control her tears as she recalled the day when her only son set himself afire. "He told me not to come to the spot.
'Ma, mera dil dahal jaayega, mujhe bus thoda sa natak karna hai,' he had said. So I was sitting in a park near the spot where he set himself afire and I watched him fight the flames," she said.
"His children often ask me why he did this. And I tell them how even as a child, he would always ask about Bhagat Singh's sacrifice. That's how he was."
Rajeev had been on a hunger strike at Deshbandhu College for 11 days, before he became the face of the anti-Mandal agitation in the 1990s by attempting to immolate himself.
Nandrani, who now stays with her daughter at Michigan, told the medicos: "That time has come again when you students need to stand up and protest against reservation.
I have come here to support you. You must continue the agitation, but remember never to take an extreme step like suicide."
She broke down as she said, "My son gave his life for this. Mera baccha us din se theek nahi raha. Is aarakshan ke peeche usne jaan de di. (He never recovered after the immolation bid)."
Rajeev died of multi-organ failure in 2004. Added Rajeev's niece Dolly: "Rajeev's father has been calling up and asking us to repeatedly take her to AIIMS. She came to India last week, but has been unwell ever since."
Nandrani could not control her tears as she recalled the day when her only son set himself afire. "He told me not to come to the spot.
'Ma, mera dil dahal jaayega, mujhe bus thoda sa natak karna hai,' he had said. So I was sitting in a park near the spot where he set himself afire and I watched him fight the flames," she said.
"His children often ask me why he did this. And I tell them how even as a child, he would always ask about Bhagat Singh's sacrifice. That's how he was."
