21-yr-old remembers nightmare

KOLKATA: You wouldn't find anything amiss if you met 21-year-old Debolina Ray. She is like any other vivacious girl her age confident, fun-loving and ready to take on life. The deep scar within rarely surfaces.
It did so on Monday when she learnt about Sampa Chakraborty's accident the previous evening. It brought back dark memories of a similar fate she had suffered two years ago.Drunk schoolboys out on a fun ride had dashed into Debolina and her friends. Her friends got away with minor injuries but Debolina was grievously hurt.
"What happened to the lady on Sunday is almost a repeat of what I had suffered. I was waiting at the bus stop with two friends when a car appeared out of nowhere and rammed into me," she recalled. The impact left her with multiple fractures. "She was bed-ridden for seven months. Even now, she is yet to completely recover," said her mother.
The family has so far spent Rs 3 lakh on her treatment. Debolina, who is now working as a sales executive while pursuing graduation, didn't have even a medical insurance when she had the accident.
Anger and frustration still brews in Debolina and her family. While she suffers a lifetime of pain and missed opportunities, Utsav Dutta who was at the wheel of the car got away scot-free. "I loved to dance and was undergoing training in Bharatnatyam. After the accident, I had to give it up forever. There are so many things I can't do. But the perpetrator is free," said Debolina.
Incidentally, Debolina's parents withdrew the case against Utsav in December 2008 following pleas from his father. But they rue it now.
"Utsav and his father regularly visited us to inquire about Debolina's recovery. Little did we realize that all this was to influence us to withdraw the case. He is almost my son's age and we thought he was repentant. But when the case was withdrawn, they refused to even acknowledge us," said her mother.
Debolina leads as normal a life as any. But she is all nerves while crossing the road and jumps every time she hears a car brake. Debolina feels drunken driving accidents will continue till there is awareness, "For those in the car, it is fun. They don't bother about human lives. Look at what happened on Sunday," said Debolina. She is also planning to visit Sampa.