Bound by Blood

July 15, 2009.

The television blared the breaking news: the High Court had delivered its final verdict in the high-profile Bansal V/s State of Maharashtra case. As you, Senior Advocate Sudhakar Singh Suryavanshi, watched, the news presenter announced that opposition leader Dhanraj Bansal had been found NOT GUILTY of the rape and murder of twenty-year-old Meera Sinha. An uproar erupted in the newsroom as the case was declared closed.

Turning off the television, your hands trembled as you rotated tulsi rosary beads. Tears rolled down your cheeks as you looked at family photographs, muttering a silent prayer. Outside the high court, a chaotic scene unfolded – a mix of cheering party workers, furious activists, and an angry mob. You emerged alongside Dhanraj Bansal, accepting the adulation and questions from the throng of reporters.

Your blunt voice cut through the noise as you attempted to explain the legal aspects, only to be interrupted by the sharp, accusing voice of Sonal Mathur, an activist who hated you as much as you hated her. As you sparred with her, a middle-aged man and woman, Meera Sinha's parents, emerged from the crowd, weeping and confronting you with their grief and accusations. Meera's mother, her eyes burning with fire, swore on Kali Maa and Chandi, unleashing a chilling curse upon you.

Shaken, you were escorted away by a police officer, the curse echoing in your mind. Speeding through the city in your car, the bitter taste of victory mixed with unease. Your phone beeped – the remaining five crores from Bansal had been transferred. Just as a smirk curled your lips, a biker sped from a side street, colliding with your car at a crossroads. Stepping out, ready to unleash your anger, your gaze locked with the biker's, and the world seemed to crash around you. It was him – Samar Singh Suryavanshi.