Mumbai:
First they lost their husbands in the 26/11 Mumbai terror strike, then they managed to get compensation from the state. But now that money has sparked off wars within the family.
25-year-old Kalpana Pawar was widowed when her husband Ambadas Pawas, a police constable, died battling Ajmal Kasab at the Chhattrapati Shivaji Terminus.
A year later, she lives alone with her young son, forced to move out of her in-laws house. The constant demands for a share of the 25 lakh rupees she received as compensation is the reason. This, even after she gave them part of the interest and shelled out 50,000 rupees for her brother in laws wedding
"My in-laws keep saying that I have given them nothing, that's what they are spreading in the community. Until now I used to give them my husbands entire salary of Rs 10,000 every month. But now I keep Rs 5000 for my son and myself. How are we to survive?" asks Kalpana.
It is the same story for Sunanda Shinde, another 26/11 widow who lives right next door to Kalpana. Sunanda's husband, Bhagan Shinde, a ward boy, died in the firing at Cama hospital. She was forced to pay her in laws a part of the Rs 30 lakh she received as compensation.
She even pays the rent of their house, though she no longer stays with them.
"First they asked for Rs 50,000. Then they wanted Rs 1 lakh and finally I had to give then Rs 2 lakh. Now they want Rs 5 lakh," said Sunanda.
This is a story that is repeated across the Prateeksha Nagar colony in Mumbai where several 26/11 widows live in accommodation provided by the state. Bound together by the same tragedy, their in-laws no longer want them, but want their money.