Family members and relatives of the victims of the 2008 Rautahat bomb blast feel insecure with the release of Mohammad Aftab Alam, the incident’s mastermind, and three others.

Srinarayan Singh, 84, of Saruatha village in ward 4 of Yamunamai Municipality, Rautahat, says he is shocked by the decision of the Birgunj bench of the Janakpur High Court on Wednesday to acquit former minister and Nepali Congress leader Alam and three others in the 2008 bomb blast and subsequent murder case. Singh lost his son Trilok Pratap Singh and neighbour Ruksana Khatun’s son Osi Akhtar in the incident, both of whom were allegedly burned alive in a brick kiln after being injured in the explosion.

Despite Rautahat District Court sentencing Alam to life imprisonment in April 2024, the high court acquitted him, his brother Mahatab Alam, Sheikh Seraj and Badri Sahani. Singh, speaking to the Post over the telephone, said the verdict left him devastated. "I had faith in the judiciary after the district court's ruling, but the high court denied me justice. Now, I will appeal to the Supreme Court," he said.

Singh had actively followed the case, attending hearings in person until his health declined. He now feels unsafe and has requested security arrangements. The police had previously assigned a bodyguard, which was withdrawn a year ago.

The blast occurred on March 27, 2008, the eve of Nepal’s first Constituent Assembly elections, at a cowshed belonging to Sheikh Idris in Farhadwa, then ward 4 of Rajpur VDC. Trilok Pratap and Akhtar were injured in the blast and allegedly thrown alive into a nearby brick kiln. Singh pursued justice for over 17 years, even selling three bigha (2.03 hectares) of land to cover legal costs.

His son Trilok, 22, was a second-year B Sc student in Sitamarhi, India, and had come home for a visit when the tragedy occurred. Singh filed cases in both Kathmandu and Gaur, demanding punishment for Alam and 10 others, accusing them of burning the victims alive.

The case only gained momentum in 2019 after then-Rautahat police chief Superintendent of Police (now Senior Superintendent of Police) Bhupendra Bahadur Khatri arrested Alam. In April 2024, the district court sentenced four accused, including Alam, to life imprisonment. However, after Wednesday’s high court verdict, Alam was released from Nakkhu Jail in Lalitpur and Mahatab from Gaur Jail. Alam is currently undergoing treatment in Kathmandu under the care of his youngest son, Rajik Alam, mayor of Rajpur Municipality.

The high court ruled that the prosecution failed to present concrete evidence to prove the explosion site, or that Trilok and Akhtar were transported in a tractor and burned at Raja Brick Kiln. Forensic tests also failed to confirm that the victims were incinerated in the kiln. A division bench of justices Khusi Prasad Tharu and Arjun Maharjan at the court’s temporary bench in Birgunj overturned the lower court’s verdict, ruling that the evidence presented was insufficient to uphold the convictions. The court ordered Alam’s immediate release from custody.

Singh, once hopeful that “justice had not died,” now feels abandoned by the system. He remains at home, mentally disturbed and grieving the loss of his youngest son. His elder son, Satyendra Pratap Singh, now cares for him.