Amid heavy police deployment, the bodies of Nirbhaya convicts Vinay Sharma and Pawan Gupta reached their residence in Rama Krishna Puram’s Ravidas Camp at 2.14 p.m. on Friday. The two, who had spent the last seven years together in jail, were cremated together.
Around 50 men, mostly family members and neighbours, walked about 4 km from the camp to the Green Park cremation ground to attend the cremation.
“Faansi waale [those who have been hanged]” was the term used for the group of men by passers-by as they crossed the roads and streets in full public glare. “Who is attending their cremation?” asksed a man to another. “Who knows! Probably only family because they are not martyrs,” the other replied.
At 3.05 p.m., they began the rites and the pyre was set alight. Vinay’s father was spotted sobbing.
Back in the camp, while locals in the area did not sympathise with the families of the convicts, their neighbours did and sat around them under a white tent outside Pawan’s house. His mother sat in the middle against the wall, quiet.
“She is not talking to anyone. She is not even crying. We ar