Parag’s demise shatters other blast victim’s family

MUMBAI: “One battle is over. Another one to live on has just begun. You may cry but eventually have to move on in life, locking memories in a small dark corner,” said Dinesh Singh to the grieving family of Parag Sawant. The Singhs probably know it better than anyone what the Sawants are going through. Parag died on Tuesday after suffering cardio-respiratory arrest.
Virar residents Dinesh and Meera Singh’s 22-year-old son Amit was one of the victims of the July 2006 serial train blasts. He slipped into coma and remained confined to a bed in Jaslok Hospital till his death two years ago. Much like Parag’s family, their lives too revolved around tending to his medical needs.
The mood at Singh’s residence changed soon after they learnt of Parag’s death. “It is like reliving our son’s death. My wife was shattered after the news. Somewhere, we had this little flicker of hope that he will emerge victorious and return home, something we had wished for our son,” said Dinesh.
Both Amit and Parag beat all odds to emerge out of coma but never lived their normal lives again. The former survived for seven years, the latter for nine. Both were at the dawn of enriching their lives. Parag had recently got a promotion while Amit was preparing to do his MBA.
He said the two families may not have interacted much but have remained aware of each other’s lives. “We read every article about Parag with great attention and thought if he can improve, so can Amit,” he said. Parag’s father Jayprakash had even visited Amit once at Jaslok.
Dinesh said the toughest thing is to suddenly wake up one day and not have a purpose. “After Amit died, we lost our purpose. I still had office to distract myself but my wife had nothing,” the father told TOI on Wednesday. For seven years, Meena would unfailingly leave her house at 6-6.30am every day and return post 11pm. It was only after the blast that Meena, originally from Lucknow, started commuting alone.
In 2009, Dinesh got his elder son Dhiraj, a project manager with an IT firm, married. “I decided that our lives cannot remain stranded. His wife and daughter brought a lot of laughter and joy. Our house would no longer be locked up all day,” he said.
In hindsight, he now thinks it was good that Amit was single. “Parag’s wife Priti has a long journey ahead. But she has a purpose. She has a daughter to raise,” he said.