AFFIDAVIT OF SHRI S.M. PUROHIT S/O LATE SHRI A.N. PUROHIT AGED 57 YEARS, VICE PRINCIPAL, GURU HARKRISHAN PUBLIC SCHOOL, VASANT VIHAR, NEW DELHI-110057. 

            I, the above named deponent do hereby solemnly affirm and state as under:

1.                  That I am resident of Staff Quarter No.201, GHPS, Vasant Vihar, New Delhi and Guru Harkrishan Public School, Vasant Vihar was burnt/ransacked by a violent mob on 1.11.84 in the wake of assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi.  As I was present at the site, I prepared a report which is annexed herewith and the same be treated as a part of my affidavit.  The said report is annexed Annexure-A hereto. 

                                                    A N N E X U R E - A

1^ST NOVEMBER, 1984

The school was closed, all the offices and commercial centres were also closed.  (Mrs. Gandhi had been assassinated the previous day).  At home, all were pensive, sad.  We had been up late, watching the TV reports and had got up late.  I took time, casually getting ready for the day when around 8 AM the Principal spoke to me over the phone and asked me to phone the transport authorities (as over 2000 students and the staff members of the school  come to school by buses) and inform them that the school would remain closed till Sunday, the 4^th of November and that Monday, the 5^th would be a normal working day.

I had the register with the addresses and phone numbers of the staff in my office – about 400 yards away from where I live, on the School Campus.  I informed the transport incharge – the Estate Officer, who also lives on the Campus, to inform the Bus Contractor about the arrangements, and went to my office and informed the staff members of the decision taken.  Having done so, I started back home.

It was, I think, 10 AM.  I had walked a 100 yards or so towards the residential area when I noticed a crowd of about fifty tresspassers rushing into the school campus and towards the motor vehicles (three school buses and three vans were parked in the parking area) to damage and burn them – which they ultimately did.  I tried to stop the person who was leading them but he shouted I’ll kill you and hit me on my right arm with a lathi ( baton ).  It was then that I noticed the Estate Officer just behind me and I realised that the leader had meant him and I shouted out to him to get away – which he did, and I fell down. 

I don’t know for how long I remain dazed, but I recollect seeing crowds of trespassers over 300 persons converging into the campus from three directions (1) the school main gate, (2) the South east corner of the campus – from the park and (3) across the rain water drain adjacent to the school swimming pool.  I found him safe, with his wife and daughter. A police officer, with a motor vehicle was there, who told him that he would transport – escort him to some safe place – wherever he wanted to go.  I heard the Principal saying that he would like to be taken to Hotel Siddhartha, nearby.  The principal then asked me to take care of his Colour TV set and his video set.  I therefore left the place to get some one to help me carry the sets to my house.

In the mean time, I found – tresspassers, violent, gathered around the staff residential area.  They had set fire to a window curtain in the Head Mistress’s drawing room – which I managed to putout by throwing water from a water tap in the garden just out side the window.

I then noticed Mrs. Nijjar (a primary school teacher) and her daughter carrying the Principal’s TV and Video sets to their apartment and as informed that the Principal and his family had left with the police officer and that a “Jonga” which would be coming to transport the staff members to some safe place.

The crowd was getting more violent.  They had broken the window panes of the Music Teacher’s Apartment – entered the drawing room and looted and destroyed the decoration article in theliving room.  The Headmaster’s living room and kitchen had also been looted – of valuable articles, the carpet, and kitchen gadgets. A window curtain was on fire and the fire was spreading on to the furniture. 

There were three motor vehicles parked in front of the block my car, the Headmistress’s son’s car and his office Jeep.  There were half a dozen scooters too.  Ashoke, my son and I had to beg and cajole the mob to spare the vehicles because they belonged to teachers.  Even so, one scooter – Mrs. Agarwal’s was set on fire (which Ashoke, my son and I managed to put out) and the wind shields and window panes – the glass of all the three motor vehicles were shattered and broken.

Then they wanted to enter the block but were prevailed upon and prevented.  In the meantime, the school building, the office and basement and other areas, I learnt later, had been entered into and curtains, furniture set ablaze.  Another block of staff quarters just opposite had also been entered into.  They had found easy access from the public park. 

It had not been possible for me and my son to leave unguarded the Duplex quarters, where all the Sikh members of staff with their families, residents on the campus, had taken shelter unknown to the mob.  I knew that they were in the block.  Unknown to me, they all of them, were sheltered in my apartment in the block.  Mrs. Agarwal ( a Hindu) whose scooter had been set on fire, had, however, tried to guard the other block where she lives.  Even so, one apartment had been set on fire by the mob and articles from some of the other apartments were looted or burnt.

I am not aware of the exact time and duration after which the mob left the residential area but they did and that too, suddenly I heard some one say “that is all, that is all, now lets go” and they went.  As they had come, so had they gone.”

It was then that I had time to think of my own apartment and my family. But the fire in the Headmaster’s living room had to be put out. My son with our maid servant had already started throwing water to put out the fire. I helped them and seeing it under control went to my apartment.

All were safe. All the Sikh members of the staff alongwith the families were unhurt in my apartment. Only Mr. Bakshi, the Site Engineer, of the school, I found, was injured badly. He had been beaten up by the mob while he was on his way to the residential from the office near the school’s swimming pool, under construction. Although he had some bones fractured by the beatings, he had managed to come to my apartment, the nearest. My wife finding him soaked in blood, had taken care of him not letting the others, sheltered in the house know about his injury, for fear of causing more panic.

I was told later that when Mr. Bakshi took shelter in our apartment, large stones had been hurled into our apartment. The windowpanes, I noticed, all had been shattered. My wife had courageously gone out, faced the mob and had talked to the crowd, which had effect, for the crowd had left.

Dr. Manek Shaw who is attached to the Arya Samaj Dispensary in Vasant Vihar was informed over phone about Mr. Bakshi’s injury and he with Dr. Kutar of St. Luje’s Nursing Home, Vasant Vihar came in their car. They attended to Mr. Bakshi’s injuries but as he needed special attention, took him in their car to St. Luke’s nursing home and had him admitted there.

It was then that a lady with three gentlemen approached me. She introduced herself as Mrs. Nandita Mazumdar, daughter of Mr. P.N. Haksar Ex-Secretary, Planning Commission and the three youngmen, students of Jawaharlal Nehru University. They had come to help for they had seen what had happened, from their houses about 300 yards or so, across the drain and field behind the school campus.

I suggested that all the members should be shifted to some other place for the school campus appeared unsafe. They who had come to help, like me were Hindus and the staff members had to be convinced that they were in safe hands. It took some time convincing them but in the end they were all convinced and in twos and threes they were all escorted to safety to the houses behind the school campus – across the rain water drain and field. Only my family and the music teacher was expecting a friend to come to his aid. Ashok, my son had phoned a friend to come and help us. He arrived in his car so my wife, my son’s wife and my grand daughter got into the car to be taken to a relation’s house. As the music teacher’s friend was yet to come, we suggested that he and his family too might be taken in our friend’s car to where they wanted to go. So they were all accommodated and left.

All had left- leaving all articles they wanted looking after in our care in our apartment. Mrs. Agarwal who was still shifting her household goods to our apartment made some tea in our kitchen. We had nothing since the morning. It was then that I looked at my wrist watch and noticed the time. It was 3:30 pm.

A friend, Mr. Bhatt came to take Mrs. Agarwal. Ashok, my son and I decided to stay on. I felt that if we too left, then all the goods left in the residential quarters would be looted. I called the few Hindu servants, about half a dozen of them, living on the campus. They were also frightened and wanted to leave. I told them that my son and I would like to delay their departure and that I really would be better if they too, alongwith us stayed on. They agreed, though still uncertain.

I then went to check the condition of the school building. There was fire in the Bank in the school basement. The gate was broken. I know there were fire extinguishers thee. So I entered, had the fire extinguished and saved the bank. It was impossible to enter the school building – the office was burning and the heat was unbearable. All my collection of books on education which I had garnered from U.K., U.S.A. and Canada – my notes, 30 yrs. teaching experience, my manuscripts – short stories, poems and the book I was writing, “My Education – My Teaching” art material I treasured and enjoyed using for painting – my hobby, my bank pass books – “receipts”. Income Tax File, Insurance Policies and “ Valuables that I had kept there in the steel almirah all then our residential quarters – and after office hours, I had found it a sanctum and worked there late hours. There was no electricity power (electricity) for the pump to work. And so I returned, depressed.

I returned to take precautions for the night. With the help of the servants, I had the entrance to the residential complex (apartment) blocked somehow, to prevent more looting after dark. The telephone in my apartment fortunately, was the only one working. All other telephones on the campus were either burnt or stolen. The phone was indeed a blessing. I could get in touch with friends outside the campus. It was useful to students, their parents and staff members too for collecting information from me about the school.

I tried to get armed guards (police) for the night. Many more promises to send, but none came. The Fire Brigade too, failed to some to our aid.

Fortunately, their policemen had come to guard the Bank. I requested them to keep an eye on the residential quarters and hoped for the best. At night, I learnt that the Principal had shifted to a friend’s house. I phoned and informed him of the situation, he told me to stay on  the campus to guard what was left and salvage all I could, and so I stayed.

That night there was no sleep. The servants remained awake. They remained alert and so did we – father and son.

2^nd November

      With the servants I went to the school building. There was little water in the water cooler in the Science building. With that, we managed to extinguish the fire that was till burning in the Headmaster’s office. Also, with some sand and dust we put out the fire in the gymnasium and saved some Dunlop mattresses used for ‘gymnastics’.

      We found it difficult to enter the Principal’s bungalow – there was fire in the rooms, still burning, on the ground floor.

      In the afternoon, however, with Mr. Bhatt, a teacher’s husband. I went again to see if we could enter the house. We did. A steel almirah had been broken open and the locker inside was also open with the key in the lock. There was nothing in the steel almirah. Books, files and articles lay strews all over in the rooms on the 1^st floor.

3^rd & 4^th November

      The 2^nd had passed off without any untoward incident on the campus except that looting had continued and we were unable to do anything. There were three police constables, on duty who were also unable to do much as the area is vast and open from all sides.

      On the third afternoon, I went out for a while, to look up my family. When I returned, I found the servants gone. They had taken their family members to a safer place. I had to again to and talk to them and convince them that they were safe here on the Campus with me.

      At night, the Principal came and had a look around his bungalow and the school.

      On the 4^th, I with some servants went to the Principal’s bungalow and sorted out the litter there. Books and files were sorted out. The books-his, were put into a large steel trunk and his daughter’s books were put back into the almirah in her room. Files and valuable papers – bank receipts, his and his children’s certificates (School and college education) bank papers, passport and the manuscript of a apartment. These I handed over when the family returned to the campus few days later. Eight notes of Rs.100/- each found in an envelope that day in his bedroom I handed over to Mrs. Singh on the 5^th morning when they visited the school.

5^th November

      Staff members with their families returned this morning to the campus. By 5 pm, the electricity connections had been restored and we got water and light that evening and the atmosphere gradually started getting normal.

*    *          *          *          *

      The Principal too with his family returned to the campus during the week and occupied the apartment meant for guests – as his bungalow was badly damaged. Office started functioning with a skeleton staff – but from November 12^th all the office staff started attending school and we started resetting everything in order. The school re-opened on 21^st November, when teaching work was resumed in all the classes from Nursery to class Twelve.