VIJAYAWADA: Satyam Babu sits on the edge of his chair as he speaks animatedly. His voice has a lilt, but is crystal clear — the kind that sounds confident. But when he stops gesticulating, his hands shiver and the veneer wears off.
The 29-year-old hangs onto every word, like little else matters; and the debilitating loneliness of prison and the tragedy of the hundreds of conversations he has lost in the last eight years show. Satyam Babu has once again become the man in the spotlight, this time not as the villain — at least not in Ayesha Meera’s story.
The former farmhand, who was acquitted in the sensational murder case, claims jail has changed him and that he now feels responsible for his aging mother and younger sister who works as a nurse. “I have to get my sister married. I’ll need at least `5 lakh or `10 lakh to pay her dowry,” he says, just a day after he said he had no idea how to seek compensation and would discuss with his lawyer how and how much to claim from the government for the years he lost behind bars. He says though he did carpentry at jail, he doesn’t know enough to make a living off it. The ex- convict does elicit sympathy.
But all it takes to disconcert him is a question. Satyam snaps back at the reporter when asked about the eight other cases against him — including one for attacking a woman and attempting to drag her away. “I have only just been released. I don’t want anymore trouble.”
Even if he has been acquitted of murder in the Ayesha Meera case, his history, which the police had greatly relied on to build up the case against him, is damning. There is no wiping the slate clean, and Satyam knows that.
He steers clear of the topic. “I feel like I have been born again. That prison was a womb. I am unaware of what has happened in the world in those eight years. I feel like a baby that has to learn life anew.”
Satyam says he fought and overcame depression in the dingy rooms of the Rajahmahendravaram Central Prison by focusing his energies on securing a B.A. degree in Telugu. Why Telugu? “Because that’s all I know,” he replies.
“Life in jail was tough, I don’t need to tell you that. Home was just a few hours away, but it felt worlds apart. The news of my father’s death was kept from me, until his last rites were performed. I never lost hope though. I knew I had done nothing wrong and would be released. I had admitted to the crime only because the police had threatened to kill both my mother and sister if I didn’t do as they said,” he claims.
Within minutes of Satyam alleging that his confession was choreographed, TV channels across the state would beam the clip of a rather collected 21-year-old Satyam explaining how he had murdered Ayesha Meera in gory detail.
“I have never met Ayesha’s parents, but they’re the reason Satyam still exists,” he insists now.
‘My life is under threat’
Satyam Babu on Tuesday claimed threat to his life from police officials who had probed the Ayesha case. “If anything happens to me or my family, they should be held responsible,” he said.