Aftab Alam Ansari displays the welts on the sole of a foot, scars of police torture on him since his arrest in December on a false charge. Picture by Bishwarup Dutta

Aftab Alam Ansari cannot stand on his feet for more than 15 minutes — the result of police torture on him.

His family has been ostracised and his sister’s wedding has had to be called off — the result of the police mistakenly branding him a terrorist.

“Police ne to humlogon ki zindagi hi badal dali. Ab to zinda rahne ka maksad hi khatam ho gaya hai (The police have changed our lives. I have now lost the purpose of living),” said the 26-year-old Baranagar resident, who had to spend 22 days in custody after being picked up on the false charge of supplying explosives for the chain blasts in Uttar Pradesh in November last year.

Aftab, the only earning member in the family of eight, broke down repeatedly while recounting his ordeal that started on December 27, when he was picked up by the CID on a request from the Uttar Pradesh police.

Wife Sufana was sitting in one corner of the 10ftx10ft room, clutching their wedding photograph to her chest.

“In Lucknow, they made me lie on a wooden bench after tying my hands and legs and then they hit my soles repeatedly with a baton. They demanded a confession that I was Mukhtar, alias Raju, an alleged terrorist suspected to have played a role in the blasts. After I was let off on January 17, I could not stand for more than 15 minutes because of a severe pain in the right leg,” recalled Aftab.

Aftab Alam Ansari with mother Ayesha at their Baranagar home. Picture by Bishwarup Dutta

The youth fears losing his job with CESC because of his physical condition. “My job requires me to stand on ladders for hours to fix snags in the supply network. But how can I keep working in this condition? And who will look after my family if I lose the job?” wondered Aftab, now posted in the power utility’s Consumer Redressal Section.

A doctor has suggested a surgery which will cost at least Rs 15,000. “Where will I get the money from? My family is just about surviving on my salary of Rs 6,500. And thanks to the police, I did not get my salary in January as I could not attend office,” said Aftab.

“I wanted to sue the cops for the illegal confinement and torture. But we don’t have the money to fight a legal battle against the state,” said mother Ayesha, seething with rage at the police bungling that has cost her so dear.

The family’s misery does not end with Aftab’s. The marriage of his sister, Afsana, 19, had to be called off after the groom’s family backed out. The terror tag has also prompted the relatives to snap ties with the family.

“I do not know how will I marry off Afsana and the other two sisters, Sultana and Rizwana. Life has become hell now,” rued the youth.

“The incident is really shocking. This is how the police function in our country,” said CPM parliamentarian Mohammad Salim.