Time left indelible scars: Bhanot siblings

Chandigarh: "One gone, three more to go." A succinct statement, yet loaded with turmoil within the hearts. It is made by Neerja Bhanot's brothers while reacting to the news of the killing of Jamal Saeed Abdul Rahim — one of the hijackers and assailants of their younger sibling. An air hostess of Pan Am flight 73, Neerja — Lado to the family — had died shielding three children from gunfire that erupted on the hijacked plane in September 1986.
Time, though, has failed to heal the scars left by the tragic death of 23-year-old airhostess. "It is still not over yet. We will wait for the day when the other three (hijackers) are blown to smithereens. For us, her brothers, the real peace will come only then," adds Aneesh, one of two brothers, when TOI visited their Sector 46 residence — Neerja Niwas.
"The youngest of the three (children), Neerja was born after a lot many prayers," recalls her mother, Rama. The tears welling in her eyes give away an otherwise serene demeanour that this 84-year-old tries to project. "My daughter is gone, my loss cannot be compensated. That was her destiny. God gave her everything, but long life. At a tender age, she ended up doing what people cannot do in 100 years," she adds.
Neerja was spotted first by a magazine in Bombay when she was still studying, and only 16. But her vivacious personality drew big brands to her doorstep and she ended up emerging as a renowned model with 90-odd assignments to her credit. Slain on September 5, her family had received the body two days later. "It was my Lado's 24th birthday that day (September 7)," Rama recalls, her voice breaking. "Before she left for that ill-fated flight, she was busy making a collection book. It had all her personal photographs and advertisement clippings," she adds while flipping through the book her daughter planned. "She said she would complete it once she returns."
More than 24 years back, Aneesh had accompanied his father Harish, a journalist, to collect Neerja's body at the airport when it arrived in India. Today, her Fiat car is parked outside Neerja Niwas, as if waiting for the family's daughter to step out and take the wheel.