The fact that none of the perpetrators are yet to be brought before justice even two years after the gory incident only adds to their anguish.

"The government did not even show any sincerity to make a fair probe into the attack, let alone do us justice," grudged Mamun, son of a grenade attack victim Ada Chacha (Rafiqul Islam), a favourite among AL activists.

"There is no hope that this government will bring the perpetrators to book," he said.

"We are fine. Thank you for at least asking which the government did not bother to ask," was the reply of Ada Chhacha's daughter Maya when asked how they were doing.

She also thanked The Daily Star for running a story on the family last year, which focused on her younger brother Pallab who stopped his studies at North South University (NSU) after his father's death. Following publication of the story, the NSU authorities waved his tuition, enabling him to continue studies there.

But not everyone could say 'we are fine' as Maya did. The August 21 blast orphaned two sons of Sufia Begum, widowed Bashir Ahmed, made two-year-old Al Amin fatherless.

Afaz Uddin lost his daughter and lone bread earner, Asma could not go back to her husband's house due to loss of her father Hanif Miah who had promised his son-in-law a job as a dowry, and many others are still agonising for the loss of their beloved ones.

Many of the survivors became crippled, lost one or multiple organs or living with splinter wounds. They still shiver in horror remembering the gruesome moments they underwent.

"I barely make my living with my two daughters," sighed Rasheda Akhter Ruma who has to walk on crutches.

Her husband died of cardiac arrest, followed by her two and a half-year-old son, leaving her 'alone with all the burdens in this harsh world'.

Daulatun Nahar, being crippled, lost her teaching job, while her husband was fired from an NGO school as it was exposed that she was involved in a party work and injured in an attack on a political programme.

"I can neither walk much, nor lie on bed, not even sit comfortably for long due to the splinters lodged in my body," said Rumi Islam, recalling the horrendous, bloody incident. She took treatment at home and abroad but physicians failed to remove the splinters from the body.

And such are the cases of Asma Zerin Jhumu, Morshed Kamal, Beauty Nizam, Ratna Aktar Baby and around 200 leaders and activists of Awami League and its front organisations.

"It was a moment of standing between life and death," said city AL leader Morshed Kamal. "Bombs were hurled all around us, but we could not move due to the rush and stampede ... as if waiting to see the end of life," he said.

There are even those who were injured in the stampede after the blasts. Amena suffered badly for quite a long time as 'numerous people' stepped over her body, in the chaos.

On the eve of the second anniversary of the deadly grenade attack in the country that took away 24 lives, Morsheda Mridha was found crying in front of the Patuakhali grave of her only son Mamun, a college student, reports our local correspondent.

"I want to know the masterminds behind the cowardly mayhem," demanded the mother.

"Have I not lost my only child? What have I got instead? And why should I even be deprived of justice?" she threw a question.

AL to mourn carnage with 2min silence The main opposition Awami League (AL) will observe the second anniversary of the August 21 grenade attack on its rally at Bangabandhu Avenue through a two-minute silence at 5:22pm across the country today

Govt's failure in probe draws flak Eminent citizens and opposition political leaders yesterday termed the August 21 grenade attack on the main opposition in the parliament as the most brutal in the country's political history.

Hasina says govt didn't carry out proper probe The government did not carry out proper investigation to bring persons responsible for the August 21, 2004 grenade attack to justice after repeated demands from both national and international quarters