Hi there, I'm back! Not that I really went away anywhere, it's just that I've not been among you for a week or ten days, that's all ;) So, while I've been busy EXISTING the world's been busy doing all it's usual tricks too.... the newspapers are/were full of stories of hope and disappointment at Copenhagen, millions of Indians went ga-ga because 11 guys in blue beat another 11 guys in even darker blue over a white ball. And then there were the even more regular stories of murder, suicide, rape, theft, pilferage, larceny (sorry, that's the insurance creep in me, creeping out!)
This morning I was speaking to someone in Baroda - or, has that changed to Vadodara officially? (Will NaMo scream "Off with his khopdi?"). This guy jogged my memory of a late evening some few months back when I was at a dark, shady lonely bar in suburban Mumbai (dare I still say Bombay?), lost in a jumbled world of intermingling conversations, snatches of Mumbai Marathi, expletives flying thick and fast in the air competing for space with the thick hazy clouds of smoke that rose from the cigarettes... across the table from me was a stranger, sitting, like me, alone. In the dim light and through the smoke I could see a "NO SMOKING" sign behind his head as he leaned forward and asked in a tentative voice whether he could borrow a cigarette from me. He promised to return it whenever we meet again! I passed my cigarette pack across - he carefully took one, mumbled a thanks. We went our ways, each making deep meaningful conversations with our glasses. His, I seem to recall, was rum & cola, I was as usual on a Signature - half soda, half water....
Anyway, when my Barodaker (?) friend referred to this incident I laughed because I remembered that I actually did get my cigarette back - a couple of weeks later, same bar, same table, same (can I still call him) stranger. Now a familiar face, he smiled and offered me a cigarette - never mind it was a different brand. Strange!
And then I laughed again because this morning my favourite newspaper (The Indian Express - mind it, it is THE) gave me one more of those lovely little bits of news - this comes from Jammu & Kashmir. Cops in K&K have booked one of their own - for shoplifting!Their constable, Roshan Lal was caught stealing cigarettes from a shop in Jammu on Sunday evening (what? He couldn't manage his "hafta"?). Locals chased him but he managed to escape. The locals then informed the police who have lodged a case of theft against him and sent a team (TEAM???) to his house - Roshan was not at home. The search for him is still on. Cigarettes?? I still don't believe this. My "stranger" in my local bar was straight. This is definitely stranger!!
But, hey, listen... this small, although intriguing, story was tucked away inside the IE (page 8, if you insist) right there on Page 1 was another cop story screaming out loud. No less a person than the retired DGP of Haryana Police, SPS Rathore, was found guilty of molesting a minor girl 19 years back. Subsequent harassment eventually led her to commit suicide - and, today, 19 years later, this venerable official has been "sentenced" to 6 months in jail and a fine of Rs.1,000/-! This gets even better - he was also granted bail immediately! Justice delayed is justice denied, it's often said... in this case, my personal feeling is 'twere better if the man was acquitted altogether. What is the message that the court is seeking to send? That molestation is an "affordable" crime? Rs.1,000/- bucks???? And what of poor Ruchira Girhotra who committed suicide? Should this not have been tried as an offence culpable to homicide? This is the strangest, nay, saddest take away of the day.....
No comments:
Post a Comment