
Girija Deshpande
12.2K posts

Girija Deshpande
@Girijadd
A corporate trainer and leadership coach. Translator. Blogger. Rotarian and Toastmaster.










Her name is Neelam Katara. On February 17 2002 her son Nitish was abducted from a wedding and burned alive by the sons of a UP politician. His crime was falling in love with their sister. She had never been inside a police station in her life. Her husband was dying. Her younger son was still in college. She had no lawyer and no power. She went to court anyway. Witnesses turned hostile one by one. The UP prosecutor tried to drop the key witness. Neelam challenged it herself in court and won. She got the trial moved from UP to Delhi because the politician’s influence ran too deep locally. In 2003 her husband died. She kept going. She attended every single hearing. Took leave from her job as a school teacher. Appeared in court over and over across 14 years. Vikas Yadav’s family threatened her. She did not stop. In 2016 the Supreme Court upheld the conviction. Vikas Yadav sentenced to 25 years without remission. She said this. No matter how strong a person might be justice will catch up. It may take time. You have to go through the process. Never give up. She fought for 14 years. Alone. While working full time. After losing her husband. After losing her son. She did not just get justice for Nitish. She showed every ordinary Indian that you can take on the powerful and win. Follow for real stories about people who refused to give up.
















