Regret

A thing or two I did in jest
After years I can't lay 'em to rest
They chase me and haunt too
Beneath the endless blue

My mind flies back to memories
Of the careless moments of histories
Things of value never mattered
When they ought to have deterred

Frivolous scars and tears aplenty
I doled out till my heart was empty
Soon I found myself weary
Of the camouflaged misery

The rush receded into a void
Of all the frenzy I became devoid
Then I went somewhere else
And the tears too drained to another place

After centuries I found time
To regret over my guilt sublime
It often pays visit
A flame of hurt is lit

And when I hear me breathing
I become aware of all the hurting
I caused everywhere
Like a soul bereft of care

All the pleadings and pleasings
I reminisce each & everything
So many things I wish I could change
A belated realization is so strange

All the tears I drew
All the sighs I knew
All the pain I hurled
All the hopes I crushed

I wait for my chance to redeem
I expect severance from my whim
Though I ask for forgiveness & mercy
I know that salvation don't come easy

                                                         

The Accused

Litigants were mumbling indistinctively around their lawyers and Sri K.S. Mishra, the District & Sessions Judge of Maldakhet District Court had not assumed his chair for the day yet. Varying temperatures across the Court hall had donned it with the flavours of the local fair ground. Litigants from diverse nook and cranny of the district were busy with their respective attorneys who invariably doled out optimistic assurances about the fate of their respective causes in the Court. Every lawyer told his client that he will win the case in a jiffy. The Court clock struck eleven and the disciplined judge Mishra emerged out of his chamber & rose up to the Bench. The orderly Hari simultaneously signaled everyone to stand up. Novice litigants, ignorant about the order of business in a Court of law immediately attempted to steal a word or two with their advocates who admonishingly signaled at them to keep shut. The judge made a quick ceremony of shutting his eyes and praying for divine guidance as he was about to deal with matters concerning liberty of men, their property, matrimony and numerous crucial facets that comprised their lives. He opened his saint like eyes and resumed his calm composure. He consumed a few moments to thoroughly survey his Court room for any anomalies, show of indiscipline or lack of courtesy. Luckily there were none. He stretched his left hand towards his clerk signalling him to start calling the matters in the order of their listing.

In the sleepy district of Maldakhet nothing sensational had ever occurred, at least not during Sri Mishra's tenure. But today was different. Judge Mishra was privy to the overwhelming sensations surrounding the case of State Vs. Sampat. He was staunchly aware of the viral proportions that his pronouncement on the said matter could assume, if he failed to handle it with subtlety. Sampat Kumar, the son of the once wealthy Zamindar Amrit babu, was facing trial for charges of stabbing his impoverished debtor Sathya to death. The weapon of offence had been recovered from the spot with Sampat's finger prints all over it. The Public Prosecutor wore a confident grin as he swore to put the accused away in jail for his life and send a reverberating message to the men of Madelkhat that he will hunt them down for their lawlessness. The outcome of this case had its own ramifications in the medieval minded community of Madelkhat. Sampat was paraded handcuffed into the Courtroom cordoned by uniformed men on both sides. For the entire distance from the Police van to the dock meant for accused persons inside the court, he did not for a moment raise his head. It hung down like a lifeless branch waiting to be blown away by a speeding gust. The bustle prevalent in the court receded into pin drop silence as everyone looked at Sampat, the murderer, with unconcealed awe. They scanned his ragged frame as if he were an alien captive among humans, probably wondering as to what had turned this once peace loving man into a demon. The judge cleared his throat and asked Sampat whether he would like to enter a plea of guilt. 'Not guilty', Sampat's lawyer answered for him. Thus began his trial.

The prosecution case was entirely circumstantial as there was no eye witness who had seen the accused committing the alleged crime. But the suave prosecutor moved ahead one step at a time. He established through the undisputed evidence of Amrit babu, Sampat's father, and other witnesses that Sathya had taken a hand loan of one lakh rupees from the former. He also succeeded in proving that on a few occasions, Amrit babu had publicly threatened Sathya with dire consequences if he did not repay the debt along with the due interest money. He elicited from the witnesses that the passage of about more than a year since the date fixed for final repayment had made the accused and his father impatient. "Your Honour, I have established a reasonably strong motive on the part of the the accused for doing away with the life of the deceased. Now if I have the permission of Your Honour, I'd examine the forensic expert." the prosecutor requested. "Granted" exclaimed the judge.

The State Forensic Laboratory's most senior examiner was summoned to the witness dock.

"What is your profession and what qualifies you to give scientific evidence in this Court?" inquired the prosecutor.

"Well, I'm employed as a senior forensic analyst at the State Forensic Laboratory and I have specialized in weapons as well as finger impression analysis." replied the witness.

"So, in your expert opinion, what caused the fatal wound of the deceased ? " continued the prosecutor.

The witness held the ten inch long kitchen knife, seized by the Police, for everyone to see and assertively declared "The wound on the body of the deceased has been caused by a sharp cutting instrument like the one I'm holding."

'And Your Honour is already aware that this knife was recovered from the spot with the blood of the deceased on it. So its well established that this particular knife has been used to murder the deceased.' the prosecutor quickly added.

"Have you personally examined the knife for any finger prints ?" asked the prosecutor.

"Yes, I have. I have thoroughly examined the fingerprints available on the knife and the fingerprints of the suspect.

"And...?"

"They are a complete match." exclaimed the witness. No sooner than the witness finished his last sentence, the courtroom broke into hisses and murmurs. The judge rapped his gavel ordering silence. The prosecutor strolled back confidently to his seat.

"Will the learned defence counsel cross examine the witness ? the judge asked Mahesh babu, the defence counsel.

"Yes". He cracked his knuckles as he gingerly walked up to the witness. He shot a affable smile at him and began cordially

"Mr. Patnaik.......Right ?"

"Yes"

"Could you tell this Court Mr. Patnaik, as to whether there would be a difference between a self inflicted wound and a wound caused on a person's body by another man."

"Yes there would be."

"When you say that the wound which led to the death of the deceased was caused by the knife seized by the Police from the spot, is it possible that the said wound could have been self inflicted, by using the same knife?"

Patnaik began fidgeting and felt a trickle of sweat finding its way from his brow to his chin. He blurted "Yes it ..it is possible."

"Do you, in your expert opinion, completely rule out the possibility of the wound having been self inflicted by the deceased" the defence counsel probed sharply.

The prosecutor shot up to his feet and began yelling "irrelevant, irrelevant". The judge calmly ordered him to sit down and asked the advocate to continue with his cross. "Ok Mr. Patnaik we'll leave it at that. Do you want water ?', he asked with unmistakable courtesy. 'No' came the witness's reply.

"Alright Mr. Patnaik, just one more question before you leave." Mahesh babu assured the witness. The words " last" & "leave" brought an ostensible expression of relief to the witness's facial contours.

"Will you kindly tell the Court as to how many set of finger prints, you identified on the knife ?" asked Mahesh babu. The prosecutor lost his temper and made no effort to conceal it this time. He banged the table infront of him and demanded that the defence lawyer should be prohibited to ask such baseless questions when the witness has already answered that he found the fingerprints of the accused on the knife.

Mahesh babu slowly truned around and gently stated "Your Honour my learned friend is forgetting that the witness has said that he found the fingerprints of the accused. Never for once, did he say that those were the only prints existent on the knife. So you see, I'm just trying to put my curiosity to rest. All the witness has to say is that whether he found only the fingerprints of the accused and the matter will end there." He turned back to the witness and repeated his question. But silence was all he got, until the mercurial judge Mishra lost his cool and roared "What happened, cat got your tongue ? Why don't you answer the man's simple question ?

"No" came the stunning reply of the witness. He elucidated that he had detected another set of prints and when he ran a check on 'em, he found that those belonged to the deceased.


'Nothing further.' said Mahesh, Sampat's counsel and started walking back to resume his seat. He gave a reassuring glance at Sampat, who seemed to be lost in distant thoughts while he dug his eyes into the ground beneath his feet. The prosecutor got up, regained his composure and announced 'The State now calls Smt. Malati Naik as its next witness."

After she was administered oath by the clerk, the prosecutor queried

'How are you related to the deceased ?

'I'm not. I'm only his neighbour.' she replied.

'I see ! ! So how far do you live from Sampat's house ?'

'At about a distance of ten to fifteen feet.'

'Tell us what happened that night.'

'I was going to meet Sathya's wife to borrow some milk for my daughter, when I saw Sampat walking out of his house with bloody hands. I saw him pull out a bottle of country made whiskey and gulp down its fiery contents. He then walked away like a zombie and blended into the neighboring darkness. The Police found him an hour later, senseless under a Bakul tree near the Kashuki river.'

'Nothing further Your Honour.' exclaimed the prosecutor and went back to his chair.

"Have you ever interacted with the accused ?' Mahesh babu asked Ms Naik, seizing his turn for cross examination.

'Of course I have, he's my co villager'

'Can you tell us from your memory whether the behaviour which you just ascribed to him on the spot of occurence, is his usual one.'

'No. It isn't' she gave an instant reply. 'He's quite well behaved and sober. I'd never seen him before in such a state like the one he was in, that night'

'What state?' Mahesh babu questioned sincerely.

"Well. That night when I saw him walking out of the deceased's house, I greeted him. But he didn't respond. I called his name repeatedly, still he walked dead deaf. When finally he turned belatedly, I caught his moist eyes. They were red and totally immersed in tears." she concluded. As the defence counsel had nothing else to ask her, she was excused by the judge.

The prosecutor then called the final witness to testify against the accused. He announced the name of Jharana Devi. Jharana Devi was the widow of the victim. For the first time since he had walked into the courtroom, Sampat slowly raised his head and fixed his eyes at the entrance. His eyes exhibited signs of life in them at the mention of Jharana Devi's name. One could say from his look that if at all he had any hope from anybody, it wasn't the judge or his own advocate but from his victim's wife. The judge noticed her anxiety and assured her of the law's protection in the event of her speaking truth and nothing but the truth. The prosecutor began by offering his sincere condolences to her for her profound loss. He requested her to gather her composure reminding her of the great importance of the words she intends to speak there.

'Tell us what happened ..take as much time as you need, but tell us in detail. Go on.'

Jharana Devi looked in Sampat's direction . Their eyes met for a brief moment and then left each other.

'My husband had borrowed one lakh rupees from Sampat babu's father, for paying my medical expenses when I was diagnosed with a tumor in my stomach and an urgent operation had become the need of the hour. However our only source of income, our fields, betrayed us season after season. He couldn't repay the loan and often Sampat babu came to our door for collecting the interest money.'

'So they also charged interest, huh ?' the prosecutor blurted, giving off a disgusted glance at the judge almost invoking similar reaction from him. 'Did you pay the interest ?' he asked.

'No'

'And the principal...any part of it ?'

'No'

'Your Sampat Babu must have got furious, didn't he ? '

There was a brief silence whereafter Jharana Devi began again 'Not at all. On the contrary he never even spoke a word. He would come, stand by the door and when one of us opened it, he would wait for a moment to gather that no payment was forthcoming and then he would simply walk away. After several visits, he one day assured me that he'll pay us one lakh rupees which we shall pay to his father. He also told me that his loan shall be interest free, so that it would easier for us to repay the money. He wanted to talk to my husband about it but since he wasn't there at that time, he asked me not to speak about it to my husband, as he first needed to ensure that he can arrange for one lakh rupees to give us' . Her testimony had induced nodding of several heads in the audience in agreement as they all knew the Samaritan ways of the accused.

The prosecutor unable to gather the intention of his witness, asked her, in an unsure fashion, to skip all this and narrate the incident which took place on the fateful day.

She looked up at the judge and narrated 'Sahib, that afternoon Amrit babu came to our house with a couple of angry looking men and threatened my husband that if he did not pay the money by nightfall then his son would come and finish our entire family. My husband began trembling after they left. ...Sahib, I pleaded a lot with him that Sampat babu is a nice man and he shall do us no harm. But his fear got the better of him. In the evening he came home, drunk out of his senses, swearing in all kind of filthy utterings. When I returned from the market, I found him sitting on our cot, holding our kitchen knife menacingly. Sensing his intentions, I attempted to dissuade him to give up the knife, but he got so annoyed that he landed a sudden blow on my face knocking me off a couple of feet. I heard him murmuring "I'll fix the father son duo once and for all."

She paused, gesturing for a glass of water which was immediately handed over to her by Sampat's counsel, and then she continued;

'I heard a familiar knock on our door and before I could stand up on my feet, I saw my husband rush like a madman to the door. As soon as he saw Sampat babu, he brandished the dagger aiming at his heart. Then like flashes of a nightmare one thing led to another, Sampat babu desperately escaping my husband's attacks one after another. Then all of a sudden, my husband swayed his body uncontrollably and with a loud thud landed on the ground. His body shuddered and his scream got caught somewhere in his throat and never came out. Within moments he became still. Sampat babu rushed near him and turned his body around and made him face up. ...... The knife had slit his heart Sahib .... ' She sobbed incessantly in the silence of the court room. None said a word.

'Sampat babu carefully withdrew the knife from his chest. But my husband had already breathed his last.' She again broke into uncontrolable sobbing, but managed to say, what according to her was the most important thing to say. 'Sampat babu was drunk too. I could sense that. He rushed out of our house to call for help. But not before giving me a wad of thousand rupee notes which I later counted to one lakh rupees. He never returned with help though. When he handed me the money he said "My father will still not leave you. Give this to him".
Even the walls of the court hall appeared as if they had been caught by utter shock at the willingness of a murdered man's wife to salvage her husband's alleged slayer. Slanderous speculations about her chastity were imminent. Evading eye contact with most of the audience who glanced at her sarcastically, she testified the truth and nothing but the truth. The courtroom remained blanketed by thick silence. Somebody coughed and the judge excused Jharana Devi from the witness box, but not before a dumbfounded prosecutor had expressed his decision not to declare her hostile or cross examine her. The judge pronounced Sampat to be Not Guilty and set him at liberty, who did not seemed to be overjoyed about it, the way his family members and peers were. He wanted to meet and thank Jharana Devi but she was nowhere to be found. The local daily published a front page report next day on the case, its dramatic dimensions and the verdict in favour of the accused.

                                                          **********************







( "The Accused" is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person (alive or dead), place or incident is coincidental.)

The Conversation - II

(On Law & Justice ....)

Avinash : You know, at times I really think that the law is aptly called blind. Why else is there so much injustice all around, despite libraries full of Codes, Laws, Regulations and Rules in our country. The discontentment has climbed upto an extent where people call law an a** . Ever thought why is it so ?


Me: I cannot tell you any particular reason for that..Well, le'me see; I think it’s mostly because of the popular perception that law serves the interests of only the powerful and the privileged, while the un privileged suffer despite all the protection purported to be guaranteed to them by it. The anger is fixated on the high and the mighty who appear to be immune to the rigours of law. It's also because of the prevalent understanding that despite so many so called stringent laws, there are all kinds of crimes and wrongs taking lace in our community. I may further add here that besides the law itself, a part of the anger is directed at lawyers and Courts. The former are considered to be slick manipulators of the law and the latter to be incompetent and inept as hundreds of (presumed) guilty escape the clutches of law under the very eyes of our Courts.

Avinash: Is that correct ......factually ?


Me: Look, nothing is absolutely perfect. There's always gonna be a certain degree of deficit between the aim of any law and the achievement of that aim. What's important is that there must be a perpetual endeavor towards attaining perfection.


Avinash : Sorry brother, you lost me.


Me. I'll explain.


Avinash : Yeah, please.


Me: You ask any diligent student of law, as to whether a particular issue, if at all addressed by any law has been reasonably dealt with, by it or not. He'll answer it in affirmative. But if you then ask him whether it holistically resolves it, he may not always answer in affirmative. But that may be because the full extent of the issue in question may not have been fathomed at the time of framing the relevant law. It is not humanely possible to foresee every likelihood, however remote that might be, at the time of drafting a legislation concerning that issue or problem.


Avinash: Lost..Lost..Lost

Me: Ok ok...wait...Let’s, for instance, take the example of the Indian law against rape. The Indian Penal Code (IPC) defines what amounts to rape. Let me quote the legal definition of the offence for you and then it'll be better suited to explain my point. Section 375 of IPC defines that a man is said to commit “rape” who, has sexual intercourse with a woman under circumstances falling under any one or more of the six numerated descriptions which are – firstly against her will or secondly without her consent or thirdly with her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her or any person in whom she is interested, in fear of death or of hurt, fourthly, with her consent, when the man knows that he is not her husband, and that her consent is given because she believed that he is another man to whom she is married ,fifthly, with her consent, when, at the time of giving such consent, by reason of unsoundness of mind or intoxication, she is unable to understand the nature and consequences of that to which she gives consent and sixthly with or without her consent, when she is under sixteen years of age. There is one exception which says that sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under fifteen years of age, is not rape.

The punishment for rapists is a minimum of seven years of incarceration and the Court may also extend it to a term of imprisonment for the whole of his life besides sentencing him to pay fine.

Avinash: OK.


Me: Now having heard about the law, I'm sure you would agree that if this particular section was drafted around the year 1860, various factors were taken into account to make it a fully armed provision to combat the evil of rape.


Avinash: You can say that.



Me: Well I'm not saying that. This provision of law has stood the test of time for over a century now. There is barely anything which it does not cover, under its six clauses.


Avinash: Yeah . It seems so


Me: Come 'on now Mr. cynic, stop critiquing for the sake of it, if you really think the law is insufficient, tell me what does Section 375 lack in ?!!


Avinash : I'm no lawyer but I think if the law is so full fledged, then the statistics of rape in this country ought to be something else.


Me: My friend, the world does not begin and end with drafting of a law. There are allied issues surrounding its efficacy and implementation, and of course the legal process of a trial where the truth is supposed to be revealed and the guilty be punished..Ok ? So I was saying that a century ago the law under Section 375 was enacted to punish rapists and it seemed fine uptil 1983, when the burning phenomenon of custodial rape hounded our society. Men in charge of important institutions were found to take advantage of their position and commit rape on unsuspecting females who had surrendered themselves into their custody for entirely noble purposes. So the law caught up with this evil by virtue of enactment of a series of four sections (Sections 376 A to 376 D) besides the revamping of Section 376 itself, in as much as it brought within its purview police officers, public servants, personnel in the management or on the staff of a jail, remand home or other place of custody established by or under any law or of a woman's or children's institution who are susceptible to misusing their position to ravish women under their care. It also made the punishment harsher for these class of violaters as it considered these persons to be under a far greater obligation to guard themselves against offending tendencies than ordinary men. More to this it also took cognizance of the alarming rate of gang rape, rape of pregnant women and rape of females under twelve years of age and therefore brought into existence the definition and punishment for these ghastly crimes, crimes which I'm sure were either unheard of or much less recurrent during yester - years.


Avinash: I see.


Me. Yeah!!. So what I'm trying to say is that no law is always fool proof. It's difficult to point out any law in any part of the world which has not been taken for a toss. The test is whether the roots of it are so reasonably firm that it could bounce back with force, even after being violated with mala fide designs.


Avinash: Why is it then that there is such pervasive disregard for law and its sanctions ? Why is that only if you are a land tiller or a impoverished stealer of goods you suffer the consequences of your wrong doings and the more affluent slither away from its rigours ?

Me: My friend, I'm afraid there's no strait jacket answer to that. I'll still try to allay your notions. In ancient times, in places like Rome, the cradle of legal history, law was evolved as a means to regulate the interests of a larger mass of people to the detriment of a erring few. It is said that the members of society came together and decided that they will unanimously relinquish assertion of certain rights for the greater benefit of regulation of order in their community. For example if all were to claim their right to walk on a particular road at a given point in time, then there would be complete breakdown of traffic, correct ?. Hence we have agreed that we'll relinquish our right to use the road when someone else is entitled to walk on it, that entitlement being left to be decided by that authority which is responsible for regulating traffic In short we've consciously trimmed our own cherished freedom, by virtue of a set of norms, in order to prevent chaos & anarchy.


Avinash: Right, right. Yes, I remember that story from my 12th Standard textbook, ummm. .. I forgot that author's name...ummm...Dammn !!!



Me: Don't sweat over it now.In any democracy, if you closely observe, the underlying principle of law making, you will discover that it is to subserve the greater benefit of the greatest majority. In India the law has been written on the cardinal principle that a hundred guilty might escape but one innocent man should not go the gallows. What one must immediately decipher from this philosophy is that the law has all kinds of protection writ into it for the 'not guilty'. Automatically therefore, it functions in a manner where it affords, to the innocent, all opportunities reasonably conceivable, to maintain that he's innocent. For example the burden of proving that a man is guilty is always, barring rare instances, on the party who makes such an allegation. The accused has to sit and wait till his prosecutor / prosecutrix succeeds in convincing the Judge that the accused is guilty. It's only after this stage has been reached at, that the accused will have to disprove all the evidence against him. Till then he can sit and relax. Though this principle does not hold good for a large number of mordern age crimes, yet it is the bedrock on which the criminal jurisprudence rests.



Avinash: Unbelievable..this is so outrageous. I get thrashed by you, looted by you and left for dead & I'll have to prove all this while you sit and enjoy my despair. Brilliant !!! That explains why there is such an appalling rate of convictions in criminal trials especially the ones, where the the accused is a man with contacts and the moolah. (fumes).


Me: I understand your loathing the system, but you must remember what I told you in the beginning; the law is written with an intrinsic safeguard against wrongful convictions, which is why, it casts the initial burden of proof on the prosecutor and not the other way round.



Avinash: I don't quite subscribe to this standard. To me it's a camouflaged gift to the cunning law breakers, a sort of encouragement to keep breaking it.


Me: Listen, you must understand that we are not a hardcore State like some of our neighbours, where accusation is often confused with verdict. To condemn a man, just because he's accused of something is not the sign of a healthy society. Let's in hypothesis, consider a case where you are seen standing near a dead body by some passers by. For all we know you could have been there to help him or rob him. During ensuing investigation, it's found that the deceased died an unnatural death under suspicious circumstances. No one knows who killed him and why. He was a vagabond with no criminal records or social acquaintances. The Police will definitely arraign you as the prime suspect and may be as the accused for murder.

Now if we are to go by your disownment of the existing standards of jurisprudence then imagine your harrowing condition in the trial, where for being wrongly picked up by the Police, you, instead of them will have to fight for your cause. The Police will then start habitually picking up anyone for any random crime, for it knows well that it has nothing to worry about as the poor fellow will have to work hard to save his liberty.



Avinash: But look at the cost we are paying for such a system. Its being brazenly twisted and steered for selfish ends. I don't know how many innocents, the system is saving from the gallows ,but it is surely protecting hundreds of guilty from being brought to book, as it lets them craftily manipulate law's inherent protection for the innocent, in their favour.


Me: What can I say my friend. You are cent percent correct. All I can tell you humbly is that it is a necessary collateral burden we must bear for upholding and maintaining the sanctity of our constitutional values and our ethics as a nation truly committed to equality of opportunity. Moreover I believe that its not the fault of the system alone, because when our founding fathers rested their faith on it, they did it on a bona fide assumption that their future generations will be sensible citizens devoid of corrupting vices. We have betrayed that assumption beyond every conceivable degree of treachery. When you say that a powerful man has manipulated the system, do not forget that he had several hands to aid and abet him in his malicious designs. Some persons somewhere must have made some concession in discharging their duty, for whatsoever motivation it may be, resulting in the victory of the manipulator.



Avinash: I must speak now of Kasab's case.



Me: Yeah, what about it ?



Avinash: Where hundreds of people saw him doing what he did on Close Circuit Camera TV, isn't it almost comical to again go through the detailed process of a criminal trial to prove his guilt.


Me: My answer is the same...I don’t want to recite. It may sound ridiculously outrageous, to offer someone like Kasab the same fairness of opportunity to defend himself, as is offered to any motorcycle thief. But you must realize that if we do not, it will set such ghastly precedence , that in future its example will be exploited to a regretful extent. I'll clarify further with two simple illustrations. Let's consider a case where, after a terrorist attack, the guilty are at large and there's such overwhelming pressure on the investigating agencies of our country, which is often seen in such cases, that it stages simpletons, either by coercion or by inducement, as the ones responsible for the attack. Now if the deeds are as ghastly as that of Kasab's then the prosecution will quote the precedent of Kasab's trial and demand skipping and short circuiting their trial, as was done in Kasab's case. If his plea were to be indeed entertained by the Court, then don't you think it'll be a travesty of justice. There is further a strong likelihood that the investigating agencies & the prosecution agents will become so addicted to such short - circuiting that, ghastlier the crime, the stronger their demand will be for hasting away with the trial process. Just imagine where we'll end up then.


Avinash: Hmm..


Me: Look Avinash, please do not misunderstand my deliberations as a complete support for the entire Kasab episode, I believe such actions must be responded with the harshest of deterrence, so that prospective criminals shudder before embarking themselves on similar pursuits. All I'm saying is that there is nothing wrong in achieving that end by means which are established by the founding fathers of our nation. At the same time I'm not quite sure if I could be of the same supportive opinion about the duration of time consumed by the legal process in Kasab's case.


Avinash: Exactly, you just asked my question bro. What about that, eh ? Years and years of piling on of cases and their pendency in Courts. How can you even think of justifying it, while haplessly wronged persons wait endlessly for justice?


Me : I will not justify it, I can't, I don't want to, because its wrong.


Avinash : So much about the law and legal process but no sermon on delay in conclusion of trials ? I know there’s nothing to be said... Hey is that rain I feel on my skin or just the wayward spray of the waves ?


Me: No its gonna drizzle, I guess ? Hey why not go to that cafe there and grab something for our tummies. Talking makes me hungry, you know? ! I've heard they serve mind blowing noodles there, and we can always talk about the "Justice delayed is justice denied" issue over steaming noodle strands. What say?


Avinash ( yelling ) : Noodles, here we come (runs frantically towards the restaurant with his hand shielding his head from the growing drizzle, as people around look on, startled at such an unannounced display of enthusiaism)



Me: (To nearby on lookers ) Never Mind !!!...Stop you lunatic (chasing Avinash )





                                                                                 (...........to be continued in Part III)










( Read Part - I here )

Non Stop Generosity

The"Versatile Blogger Award" was first passed onto me by Gayathri ( http://gayathri-myscribbles.blogspot.in/ ) about a month back.


By one way or another, I have been again conferred with " The Versatile Blogger Award"  by:-


1) Jayashree ( jaishwrites.blogspot.in/) on 3rd May

2) Saher (http://life-stance.blogspot.in ) on 4th May

3) Jasmeet Kukreja ( http://emotestar.blogspot.in ) on 4th May

4) Vijayabhaskar Siddareddi ( http://lifemeetsdigital.blogspot.in/ ) on 5th May

 I congratulate them for bagging the award and I heartily thank them all for passing it onto me.

 I sincerely believe that I am far away from the greatness characteristic to the writings of some of the Versatile Blogger Award ees whom I have read. So I stand greatly encouraged by the generous gestures of my fellow bloggers, in having considered me for this recognition..




As per the norm, I have also conferred this award on :-

http://petsalways.blogspot.in/ Magiceye

http://jambudweepam.blogspot.in/ C. Suresh ji

http://sarusinghal.blogspot.in/ Saru Singhal

http://amitaag.blogspot.in/ Amit Agarwal ji

http://hridyanubhuti.wordpress.com/  Induravisingj

http://tillingtheearthwoman.blogspot.in/ Bhavana

http://opnotes.blogspot.in/            Subhorup

They have to do these things :- 

•Nominate fellow bloggers

 •Inform the bloggers of their nomination

 •Share 7 random things about yourself

 •Thank the blogger who nominated you (with blog link)

 •Add the Versatile Blogger Award Pic on your blog post

Now the 7 facts about me, which I gotta tell all of you are:-

1. I strongly believe in God. For me He exists.

2. I love writing

3. I love reading

4. I  adore and respect people who tread on unconventional paths

5. I can do anything for my family. Its my biggest strength. I will give up anything which tends to compromise my family's happiness.

6. I love travelling.

7. I am crazy about films.

(That was really difficult to summarize).

Congrats once again to my fellow awardees.

Thanx again Jayashree, Saher, Jasmeet, Vijayabhaskar Siddareddi fo giving me this award.

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Soulful - A Short Story

Rajesh arrived at the accorded spot an hour before the decided time. Days of the preceding week had seen the reign of incessant pouring and this Monday was no different. Rajesh closed his umbrella as he walked under the closed restaurant's entrance sheltering himself from the tireless drizzle. The sun remained captive behind the monsoon clouds emitting an occasional halo reminding dependent mortals of its subdued existence. Such unending downpour had cast a gloomy spell on the otherwise bustling streets of Rajesh's hometown. The ambiance had become synonymous to a sorrowful dream where tears and raindrops had blended beyond distinction. What would wake up the dreamer was the only question filling the minds of the fraught seekers of sun's rays. Rajesh kept gazing hopefully at the genesis of the boulevard, filtering out several dissuading figures and shadows that seemed to crave for his attention. His mind was heavy with expectation of one particular face. He kept looking out for that person for timeless eternity and he appeared as if he could melt away bearing that look on his face.

People came and went hurriedly along the lane, now teeming with rain drops. They seemed to run towards an obstinate purpose, which they wouldn't trade, even with the exotic sensation of having million raindrops splash on their faces. To reprieve him from the restiveness, Rajesh's senses drifted along with the trickling water that merrily springed their way to the sewers, though they had been just disowned by the high heavens and banished to a lesser world. He wondered as to how could the water discover pleasure in such banishment. It didn't take him long to fathom that it was their home that the water flowed back so joyously to. The heavens, howsoever exotic they might be, didn't stand a chance against the sewers, for the sewers were where the water are born and groomed through countless conflicts and flows. The ostensible bliss of being in sewers couldn't be replaced by anything at all, not even the much craved heavens. Rajesh drifted again, momentarily, this time to an imminent remembrance of his home that he has now left forever. He had forsaken his home without a second thought, as the first thought was caused by a matter so significantly life altering, that Rajesh believed that there was no alternative to such regretful abandonment. He re assured himself out of the looming guilt for having deserted his loved ones, who had stood with him all these days. He had told himself that had he found any alternative to the present recourse, he would have gladly adopted it, but given the hostile ciscumstances, this path had seemed inevitable. Despite his self lauded logic, he didn't feel completely out of guilt. He knew he never would.

Caught in the storm of regret and guilt, he noticed a lady carrying her son, sheltering him and herself from the rain with an inconveniently held umbrella.  Rajesh saw the boy playfully take his mother's scarf, wipe her face, and bury his tired frame in her comforting hold. As he followed their dwindling figures, the antics of a father son - duo relishing the rains to the core, caught his eyes. The young son paddled the ragged trolley as his drunk father rolled over it & sang aloud some obscure folk song of his far away native land. Neither of them appeared to nurture any intention to shirk away from the blinding downpour. Rajesh couldn't help admiring the duo's blatant embrace of what others were escaping from. His attention floated off to yester - years when his father used to carry him back home from his school as he indulged in innocent fantasies all along the way. He was filled with a sense of powerlessness as he realized that no matter how earnestly he tried, he could never relive those moments. He thought of his mother, who had so diligently taken care of his desires only to be abandoned by him at a time when she must have expected him to respect her senility. He felt melancholy grow within him. The very thought of him having so brutally disregarded his family's wishes for a selfish ambition deeply churned his heart. He thought about it again and again and the more he thought about it, the more he found himself getting sucked into woeful dimensions. A loud crack of lightning followed by a roar of thunder snapped him out of the vicious cycle of regretful musings.

Rajesh shifted back to his present dilemma. He recalled the promise and the accord that had followed. He knew, he had reached early. But then the fixed time had already come and gone. He carefully revisited each words uttered during the making of the pledge. He could not etch out anything abnormal or deviant at that time. Then what must have hindered its fulfillment, he thought restlessly. He was on a leash and his time was limited. After much praying and pleading, he had earned additional limits of his time in this world. That had made him very happy as even the Gods had reiterated the solemness of his emotions. It grew darker as more and more grey clouds rallied together dirtying the vast stretches of the skies. Flashes of lightning and thunderous snarls were becoming more & more frequent indicating the relentless rains still to come. As he shut his eyes in prayer and hope, he felt a warm hand caress his right shoulder.

He turned back and saw the same angel who had acted as the Samaritan to carry his prayers to the Gods for his extended time on earth. A faint smile had titivated her face. She spoke with the mysticism characteristic to the children of the heaven. The dazzle in her eyes was capable of fixating the most nomadic of souls to her instructions. Her feet did not touch the ground indicating her subtle detachment from this world. She soberly informed him that his allotted time was nearing its end and that she has been commanded by her masters to fetch him to their disposal. Rajesh felt tears welling up inside him but he could not find them in his eyes. He sensed a profound misery engulf him but could not speak a word to express himself. The angel was about to utter something in consolation, but before she could mouth anything, Rajesh made his last plea. Leaving this world without meeting, for the last time, his dear beloved Smitha was beyond his tolerance. So he made a request to the angel to take him to Smitha on their way to the heavens. As they levitated, Rajesh wondered pitifully as to what might have caused Smitha to break her promise. Smitha's house wore a deserted appearance. He pulled the angel desperately inside the confines of Smitha's home. He saw their help Shanti, informing somebody over phone to immediately go to the city hospital. Not wasting a second further, the angel along with Rajesh swam swiftly through the dense rain to the precincts of Maheswari Devi Public Hospital. Rajesh didn't require any guidance from the reception counter to find out Smitha. He was a spirit now, salvaged beyond the constraints of humans. In no time he entered the Emergency Ward and embarked near Bed No. 15. Smitha lay there, partially blue, pale and listless. Her loved ones huddled around her as the doctor slipped a tube down her esophagus for pumping out the toxins consumed by her. She moved inadequately, faintly disturbed by the pain of the tube gliding down her delicate body. She appeared no less oblivious to the surroundings as she did to the pain writhing within her. 

Time was running out. Rajesh had wanted Smitha to join him in his heavenly abode. That was their last resort when every attempt to convince their relations had failed. They had pleaded with all they could, before each and every far and near relative, relevant - irrelevant, to let them marry each other. But Smitha's extremist family members gave a fig to her pleas. They were not supposed to, in an era where inter caste marriages were dealt with the most severe retribution from the community of men. Overnight they had arranged for her marriage with Pawan Kumar, the son of the wealthy neighborhood merchant Sri Kamal Gupta. The latter had been eyeing since long, to make Smitha her son's bride. So matters were moved with unbelievable velocity and soon the day of her wedding stood only seventy two hours away. Broken in spirit and resolve, the dedicated couple had hopelessly decided to relinquish their wretched lives which now purported to fix a permanent chasm between them. Spending sleepless nights in dejection and self pity, had caused both to forget their existences. They had found the prospect of imminent separation so unbearable that taking away their own lives seemed to be an easier alternative. They had given in. At the exact moment of dawn, over telephone, both professed love, for the last time through their mortal senses and gulped down a handful of  Restoril capsules. They chatted for some time thereafter, inducing strength and offering mutual reassurance. Before slipping into unconsciousness, Smitha promised in a feeble tone that she'll soon be with him, and that their union shall attain freedom from the constricted worldly boundaries. As Rajesh began to fade, he reminded Smitha, that he would wait for her at Gupta Bakery, the lone eatery within the the eastern limits of 12' Esfert Road,  where they had first seen each other, from where they shall embark themselves on their voyage beyond the clouds. Pinned under the dizzying effect of the anti insomnia pills & bereft of residual realism such a proposition had seemed perfectly rational and conceivable to the hapless lovers.The accord had been thus sealed with their last breaths. 

Now that Rajesh witnessed Smitha in her present condition, he no more wished for her company. The angel moved closer to Rajesh and whispered "Her time hasn't come". Before Rajesh could fathom the purport of her words, he heard the doctor reassure Smitha's father saying "The worst is over. She'll live." Rajesh shot up an obligatory glance towards the clouds offering his gratitude to the Gods. He knew, this is the last of Smitha, he would see before he was commanded to take up some other life in some alien lap or before he got lucky and was afforded salvation from that cycle. He would be stripped of her memories and the remnants of his nostalgia of a by gone tragedy. Smitha would live though. Maybe she would marry Pawan, or may be good sense will prevail over her creators to allow her healing time. Eventually she will discover bliss in someone else's arms, they way she once did in his. She ought to, for time heals everything. Especially those wounds, to heal which, time has the voluntary aid of her loved ones who didn't want the wound in the first place. Rajesh began to feel a pull, the source of which he could now guess. He quickly rushed over to Smitha and planted an unplantable kiss on her temple. She didn't respond and he didn't turn back, as he was guided out of the wards by the kind angel. As he soared out to the entrance of the hospital, servile to the upward gravity, he saw his still, lifeless body being wheeled towards the post mortem cabin on a stretcher and his father consoling his inconsolable mother. 

                                                              *******************




( "Soulful" is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person (alive or dead), place or incident is coincidental.)