The bandits looted the dowry of a poor farmer’s daughter just a night before her wedding and fled. The following night, after observing Shab-e-Barat, the same bandits sent a message to the farmer’s house through a cleric. They proclaimed that, on this sacred night, they had offered a few extra prayers and had their sins forgiven—sins so numerous that they exceeded the hairs on the goats of the Banu Kalb tribe. Hence, they warned the farmer against filing a police report, lest he be destroyed by defying the will of God. Now, can anyone enlighten Mehr whether any divine decree or Hadith was ever revealed to console such a devastated father and his daughter? If not, then let us acknowledge that these bandits have not only secured absolution for their past crimes but have also had their provisions for the coming year decreed—provisions they will secure through yet more plundering. Forgive me if I have offended any self-appointed custodians of religion. But the truth remains: my homeland itself has been stripped bare by bandits, who have robbed it of all dignity. And tonight, on Shab-e-Barat, the official plunderers of the state have had their sins wiped clean and their next year’s spoils inscribed in their fate. Go, witness it for yourself. Whether they be in the sanctum of the Kaaba or in the chambers of shrines, whether among the worshippers in mosques or the pious in gatherings—look, and you shall see.