My Wanderings 71. Short Story No. 51. A Sequel of Confession of Aparna's Mother

Before proceeding further it is worthwhile here to mention   about the two friends of Aparna, within  whom she  choose    her prospective bridegroom . They were Ajay and Vimal . Ajay was her childhood buddy and her neighbour . She always felt at ease with Ajay  and they had  family relations as well. Ajay was a happy go lucky type  young man , with ordinary  disposition and family background . On the other hand Vimal was  extremely handsome and a rich man . He  was running his  own business and had met Aparna two years back at friends party . Aparna had  a crush over Vimal for his dashing personality and sober ettiquates .
While choosing between  the two she felt the personality of Vimal more dominating  and charismatic .
She could find all the qualities of good husband like love, commitment ,trust ,attention ,good communication including listening , partnership,  tolerance , patience ,honesty,  generosity and ability to   compromise in Vimal. Therefore , she chose Vimal as  her prospective husband .
Aparna confided to her parents about her decision  and  marriage of   Aparna was solemnized  with   much fervour  and gaiety . This left  the life of Ajay much shattered as he was also in love with Aparna .
On the other hand Aparna enjoyed her married life in the company of her husband Vimal nicely . They enjoyed their honey moon at Switzerland . Vimal purchased expensive car for Aparna and took her to big hotels for eating purposes . They visited malls and enjoyed themselves while purchasing expensive clothes and gifts . After one year of their marriage  Aparna delivered a baby girl which brought more joy in their life .
Only after few years of marriage , cracks started  appearing in their relation .It all started on filmsy grounds but crossed greater heights within a shortest   period of time as the same remained  unattended . 
One night Aparna was dead tired and she was fast asleep . In the  midnight her daughter awoke and started crying .  Vimal got disturbed by the cries  of Baby and he too awoke . He started cursing his wife as he thought it was the duty of his  wife  to attend to  the child . He had to attend a business meeting early in the morning next day  . How can he attend his business tomarrow  , if  he can not sleep properly ?
He conceived that  his wife was trying to skip her duty  deliberately and feigning sleep . He awoke Aparna and reprimanded her for not looking after the baby properly as he was getting disturbed .
' But you could  also have  looked after the baby . You know i was dead tired yesterday ,"  replied Aparna
" It is your duty , and you should not escape it."
"It is the duty of both and  I am not the exception "
They had a good quarrel  over baby  for the whole night and this  small incident spread its tentacles to destroy their happy married life .
After this incident Vimal tried to compel Aparna to leave her job and attend her family  chores properly .  As already mentioned  Aparna was a career conscience woman , she could not reconcile with the idea of her husband . Eventually there was a divorce between the two and Aparna had to leave her husband's house and join her parents along with her newly born daughter .
After few years of divorce , Aparna was promoted to a senior position  and she purchased her own house with her savings and Bank loan .  Now she started living in her own house along with her daughter and decided not to marry again. But her mother never reconciled with her idea and kept on pestering her for remarriage . Once Aparna's mother suggested her about Ajay, who  was still unmarried .
" But mother How can I marry Ajay , i have already been deceived by  the  man,  whom I once felt indispensable  for me as per  cue i took from your experiences ."
"You see Aparna! no body learns from others experiences  .  One learns from his own experiences only . Moreover, Vimal was not a bad guy either . It was his inbox approach to the problem at the material time that lead   you to the trouble . Had he applied out of box approach to the problem that night by not waking you , but  just helped the child again to sleep. There  would have not been any problem at all . It was your impatience and impertinence also that added fuel to the fire."
"But I could not help that Mom  , he was too conceited , " added Aparna .
"You see  now Ajay has not married yet and still loves you . He is your childhood buddy . You know each other thoroughly well  rather you have grown up together . What is wrong in considering him for marriage ?"
" But give me some time Mom , it is very difficult  decision for me "
"Happy is the person who finds a true friend and far  happier is he who finds that friend in his spouce . It is not lack of love but lack of friendship that is the cause of unhappy marriages," ! exclaimed Aparna's Mother.
After  some time Aprana decided  to marry Ajay and later  also happily agreed to the proposal .
Epilogue
After passage of twenty years Aprana is happily married to Ajay and she is now CEO of her company . Ajay is also working on very senior position  . They are  proud parents of a Daughter and a Son . Aparna 's mother is very old and she is living with her  daughter  after the death of Aparna's father . Aparna's daughter  Ahana is  grown up and is living with her  Boy friend and Aprana is now much concerned about her marriage with him.

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My Wanderings - 70. Short Story No. - 50 Confession of Aprana's Mother

Aparna was very happy and radiant with joy as she  got a dream job in a multinational company with a very  good prospectus and high package. She had already postponed all her marriage proposals so far , as she    wanted  first to settle  properly in life . Now she was looking for a person ideally suited to herself as a close friend or romantic life  partner .  She was already in  friendship  with  two  boys , whom she liked  so  much.They were also loving her to the hilt.  In her opinion both were equally  nice guys and worth to be considered for prospective grooms for her. But she was confused to make a right choice between the two  for her  life partner .  She thought it better to  consult her mother regarding this.
'Have you ever been in love with two men at once , Mother ?'
Her mother took a pause . A distant look came in to her eyes , as she went in search of a time that was almost  lost.
'Yes , I have .'
Aparna stared at her with amazement .
'Your father was my first and greatest love ',she said and I am still happy with him . When I was of your age my friends and I believed that love was the only reason for living . If you failed to find someone there then you can not realise your dreams .After i met your father , I realised my search was over . Then we got married and you were born. Suddenly the whole world fitted in my small  home . But with the passage of time your father remained busy with his work and  I started feeling  forlorn . Strange worries of unknown origin started creeping   in   my mind . I could not reconcile my self with the daily schedule of  life,  which sometimes appeared to me meaningless . Perhaps my role  in this universe was being overlooked and I was taken for granted .
But when I entered  middle age, I met a strange man through social media. He was an Artist . We exchanged our  views on every subject  with  each other . He made me feel very important to the world  . All my problems I had been grappling with, disappeared . I felt really useful and started telling him everything . I felt necessary and that is the best feeling a human being can have . I felt  the time passed with him quickly and I sensed he also felt the same. Only once in my life I met this man personally . I could see in his eyes  that he desired me  , and I also felt the same. Once he tried to express his feelings for me but I  forbade him from doing so by saying that feelings should be within and no need to say anything . Maturity is in knowing and accepting with grace . Trust is very important .  Sometimes We  both  were behaving   like middle aged  adolescents . But age is no criterion in such things and love is not the  monopoly of adolescents  only , I believe .   This  heart is a mysterious thing which can  betray  its  holder at any stage of life  . I suddenly lost contact with him one day and every thing passed off peacefully with the passage of time .  I personally believe  that he made a  graceful exit from my life to prevent me from any embarrassment .
But tell me Mother , it never occured to you  that you were going against the norms , I mean being a married  woman .
To tell you the fact  Dear Aparna , I never left loving your father for a single day . But breaking a norm sometimes , makes your life more  thrilling  as  some  poet has said that you  are dying slowly if you don't follow a dream , if you don't allow yourself to evade a sensible advice at least once in your life time.
Yes mother these  lines are  from the poem of   Brazilian poetess Martha  , who won Nobel Prize ,responded Aprana .
The mother's confession however,  confused Aprana  further and she could not derive much relevance from  it  with her own problem . 
Her mother sensed what was cropping up in the mind of Aprana . She said," I can only guide you by my experiences in such matters of  sensibility.  I can't hold your hand  and show you the right choice . You have to make the right  choice yourself by using your own  impulses and  faculties . You must think of a person who is not someone you can walk away from  that so easily. It must be someone you can not imagine being with out ,a person you believe sticking with or fighting for.
After listening to her mother's advice and experiences , Aprana took  the cue  from it and made the decision, which appeared right to her at the moment.

My Wanderings -69. Short Story No. - 49. Her Last Romance

It is said that Men always want to be a woman's first  love , women like to be a man's last romance. But  in a relationship like marriage men may become woman's  first love but woman is rarely a last romance in man's life . Mostly the men do not realise that the  beauty of woman is not in a facial mode but the true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives the passion that she shows . The beauty  of a woman grows with the passing years. Actually it is the caring attitude and confidence in a  women that makes her sexy rather than her physical appearance .
Here I will like to narrate an old  tale of an ordinary woman  who was called by the name of Kamla.
Kamla  like all other woman of her times was very  radiant , full of  life and yearning for all the happiness that she could imagine in her little world.  She was very passionate and anticipating the existence of Prince charming in her life to whom she can bestow all her love . She did not know how he looks ? But she will adore and worship him . Kamala was not a paragon of beauty but a woman of ordinary appearance . But all her  homely looks, youth  and passionate characteristic made her disposition charming .
Later on Kamala was married to Raj. It was an arranged marriage . Raj was a handsome  young man having a very good job in engineering Deptt. He had a  very good  income by the way of  salary and other sources . But it was not only happiness that was anticipated by Kamla, marriage also brought  with it  many responsibilities  and liabilities for her. She  wholeheartedly devoted herself to her new assignment  and accepted all the allied responsibilities with out a wrinkle on her face for the love of her husband Raj . The marriage was successful for so many years . They loved each other very much .They could not bear to seperate from each other for a day or two. Whenever Kamala would go to her mother's home for two three days, Raj would arrange to bring her back the same evening .
One day Kamla said to Raj , " Darling ! I feel embarrassed sometime by your possessive behaviour ."
" But I can't help it  dear I can't bear your separation for a single day.,"
" Love me a little dear , but longer please ". , retorted  back kamala.
In the meantime Kamla delivered two sons and a daughter.
The destiny played its own part and Love did not last longer between the two as implored by Kamla .
Raj got promoted and lady  success began to lure him .
He started showing coldness towards the relation between the two . Now Raj was looking for the greener pastures .
Kamla  was observing keenly the activities of Raj . Raj got involved with various woman . He started taunting Kamla. Kamla  resiprocated  Raj in the same way. All the love in the relation was exhausted like thin air  and a vacuum was created. But the relation between the two continued as divorces were not so common those.  days in the community . Moreover, they had three children who were growing fast and needed look after . Kamla tried hard to find  and use all the  local beauty aids , whichever available  those days .Alas! beauty saloons were not existing  then. She wanted to look beautiful to attract the attention of her husband once more . But all in vain .  She was not successful in attracting the attention of her husband towards her again .  She longed for it through out her  life desperately .  Moreover , the cheap beauty aids available those days made her to look  more absurd . With the passage of time and advance age she became  more skeptical and apprehensive  and   began to find solace in taunting her husband in presence of others . She would tell  about his randevous to  everyone even in the presence of her  husband . But his husband remained always silent in presence of others, perhaps due to his guilty conscience.
Even after marriage of their children and after becoming grand parents , peace never returned to their relationship and love remained a precarious entity for them through out their lives . 
It will be worthwhile to mention about the incident when Kamla was very old and on death bed in a hospital a young Doctor  entered the hospital room and exclaimed , " vow !" Kamla ji you look so  beautiful and pretty  today ."in order to boost her moral perhaps.
She immediately retorted back ,
" Oh my Prince charming , where were you so far. I longed for you throughout my life."
With these words she closed her eyes and bade farewell  to this mortal world .

My Wanderings - 68. Short Story No. 48. An Untold Story from the Diary of a Doctor

Life is not primarily a quest for pleasure ,as Freud believed , or a quest  for power as Alfred Adler taught, but a search for meaning . The great task of man is to find   meaning in his or her life. There can be three sources of meaning in life as taught by  our  great Philosopher  in  Shrimat Baghwadgita   . We may find it in work , in love or in courage in difficult times . 
      It was   month of November in  year Nineteen Ninety , when I was living  in RajBagh locality of Srinagar all alone as my family had already shifted to Jammu due to turmoil. Not only my family but majority of the  people of my community had shifted to Jammu and various other safe quarters of the country . I being a Practising Doctor felt very safe because of my self less service to the masses in general and  people living around me in particular . 
One evening two persons called me at my  clinic and requested me to accompany them for visiting  a  Patient . They drove me in a car and it took us hours together to reach the destination.  It was by their indifferent   attitude and changed behaviour that I could very well guess ; I was kidnapped . They threw me in a dark cell and advised me to change my clothes . They provided me with  some dirty , torn and misfit clothes and took away my new suit and other valuables including my watch and wallet . I had also to exchange my new shoes for their  torn and misfit shoes. I could not have a wink of sleep that night in that dark cell with empty stomach as they could only  provide me a  scrap of bread in the name of meals. Next day early in the morning  I was made to walk through unknown paths , mountains and ravines for hours together to reach a new destination , being a bigger hut in some remote hemlet ,  where I could  notice a group o fifteen persons lying on the floor of hut  in torn shoes and dirty clothes . I soon gathered that they were also the kidnapped persons just like me . 
The men including myself were herded , sometimes to one place and then to another ,sometimes driven together , then apart like a flock of sheep with out a thought or will  of the our  own for months together.  A small but dangerous pack of jehadis  watched us  from all sides ,well versed in methods of torture and sadism. They drove the herd backwards and forwards , with shouts kicks and blows. And we the sheep thought of two things only how to evade these dogs and how to  get a little food.
We had lost everything our clothes, our shoes, our valuables ,our identity , even our professional recognition . We were only moving in   our frail bodies with a little life in them. They used to call us by nicknames which they had designed for us . We were rebuked and reprimanded for no fault of ours . It is very difficult for  outsider to grasp our condition or what we felt as prisoners . Most of men among us had lost hope of their release . They had turned indifferent . But few among us including myself had not lost hope . We were trying to find meaning in  our life . I was mostly thinking about my wife and kids and I wanted to meet  them again  because I loved them .   Therefore , i was not leaving any chance to keep myself  alive . Every thing that  was not connected with  an immediate task of keeping myself  alive lost its value . Everything was sacrificed to this end . A man's character became involved to the point that he was caught in a mental turmoil which threatened all the values he held and threw them in to doubt. Under the influence of a world which no longer recognised the value of human life and human dignity , which had robbed man of his will and having made him object to be exterminated . 
We could lie all night  in our little corner in the hut and doze and wait for the daily distribution of bread and for daily helping of soup , watered down and also decreased in quantity . While we laid our bodies  against each other to avoid any unnecessary loss of  warmth and were too lazy and disinterested to move a finger unnecessarily , we heard shrill whistles and shouts from the square where the  jehadis were entertaining themselves . Once the  door was flung open , and the snow storm blew into our hut. A new herd of people who had recently been kidnapped were flung in the hut. 
I kept thinking of endless little problems of our miserable life . I had terrible sores on my feet from wearing torn shoes . I ventured to move outside , I limped a few paces  with horrible pain  but very cold  bitter winds struck and  held me back . I used to  daydream about  my release and joining my family , this thought entertained me much and gave me a little relief . Love is the only way to grasp another   human being in the innermost core of his personality . I could find the meaning of my life in love for my family and constant  suffering . I could attribute my suffering to  my family members , who were safe and sound and compelled me to live for them .   Many prisoners had  become indifferent towards life . They had lost all hope. It was  that lot which perished most and died in transit, due to lack of will or because they had lost Intrest in life . Some of them became easy target to the guns of jehadis because of their indifferent attitude .    Almost eight of our co-prisoners died  before our release .
One day while trying to sleep  in our hut , we heard sounds of gunfire and shouts of our guards for hours together outside the hut.  It transpired that security forces had invaded the hide out and killed many of our guards and others  have escaped . We could not believe  our ears that we had been rescued by the security forces and we were free.  It took us lot of time to acknowledge our freedom ,

My Wanderings 67. Short Story No. 47 Mystery behind the Murder of Sh.Kanth Ram

I am writing this story in utter confusion  and absolute  distress because I have received a letter from my old friend , now an inmate of  Srinagar central  Jail . It is a  sort of appeal to public in general  and to the readers  of this post in particular  , thereby  seeking their help   and pleading himself innocent . The copy of his appeal shall be reproduced in original by me at  the end of my post  but first let me introduce you with the backdrop of the calamity which befell on him some thirty years back.
The story begins with the transfer of my father to a small village about fifteen Kms away  from Srinagar city  towards south   as a country Doctor . Most of village heads and known people living there started visiting my father to introduce themselves as it was customary those days to pay such visits to the new incumbent of any Govt. Department by the village heads. Once I noticed an elderly man with conspicuous disposition   talking to my father  a bit  loudly reflecting a streak of  arrogance from his suspicious countenance .I   came to know that he was a big landlord of village and his name was Shri Kanth Ram. Later on he became a very good friend of my  father and visited our residence often , sometimes  with fresh vegetables as a gift to my father , being the  new crop of his farm  . Kanth Ram was a chronic bachelor and therefore , he had  no  family . But he had employed few servants who worked at his farm and helped him in domestic chores  also .  Later on it  transpired that Kanth Ram had some relatives , who were also living in the same village . It was actually the family of his younger  brother , who had already expired . Now his widow  was living with her children ,comprising of   a  son and a daughter, in  a very  miserable condition . They had some family dispute on division of property and land , the major portion of which appeared to have been usurped by Kanth Ram after the death of his younger Brother leaving his  family  in distress .  Therefore , they were  always at daggers drawn with Kanth Ram . Kanth Ram  being  very rich Landlord never helped his brothers family in distress.  The name of the nephew   of Kanth Ram was  Tej. He was reading with me in  village School. He was very mischievous type of  boy .  He was often beaten  up by his teachers for creating some trouble in  the School. He  started taking rift with  his Uncle right from his childhood. He had become a rebel type person perhaps due to injustice meted out to his family. Tej grew  up in to  a ruffian and started threatening his uncle often . Many times he created  very awful scenes while fighting with his uncle  . Every villager was aware of the rift between the two. One day Tej even threatened his uncle to kill him in full public view. The rift between Uncle and Nephew had become the  talk of town . Many times Tej was caught  red handed  for damaging the crops of the farm of his Uncle by his guards and beaten up  blue and black  by them.
On the  fateful night a servant of Kanth Ram called  on Tej and  advised him that his uncle was seriously ill and wanted to see him  urgently  . Tej thought for some time and finally decided to visit his uncle . When Tej opened the bed room door of his uncle , he found his uncle already dead and his head  badly damaged  with  a wooden cudgel lying nearby . A cold shrill passed through the spine of Tej and his cry for help was suppressed by loud noise of the two servants  ,who entered the room abruptly and caught hold of him.
Police was called and they apprehended toTej.
Tej implored them for  his innocence but no body beleived him. The case was executed well by the prosecution in the court as there was  motive of crime well defined against Tej because he  was beneficiary to the property of deceased . Many witnesses admitted about the life  threats given by Tej to Kanth Ram often .  The defence Lawyer could not prove the innocence​ of Tej despite of his best efforts.
Tej was awarded sentence of life imprisonment till his death . Only after lapse of a year or so from happening of  this incident our community migrated to different parts of country  due to turmoil in Kashmir and  they totally  forgot about it.
Now I reproduce hereunder  in original the letter or appeal of Tej , which I received through unknown sources for satisfying the curiosity of readers as promised by me earlier .
Appeal
I Tej Kumar Bhat son of Late Sh. Mohishar Nath Bhat  Resident of ..... appeal to people who have read my story to help me in distress . I am languishing in Srinagar central  Jail for the last thirty years for no fault of mine. I hope that after reading my story you people must be sure of my innocence ,which could not be proved by my Defence lawyers in the court of Law at material time. I believe that you people will work hard  to reopen my case once again and arrange best  lawyers , who can defend me well and prove my innocence in the court of law . But  I know very well that you  could not defend the innocent killings of hundreds of our community brothers by bringing the culprits to  book . You remain satisfied when such cases were declared time barred  by Supreme court of India   . My case is much older than that. But I assure you that no case of injustice becomes time barred untill justice prevails . Therefore , I reiterate my appeal to you people to provide justice to me and hundreds of my community brothers who were deprived of justice . Otherwise I am compelled to say  that you people  will not heave  a sigh of relief or take a wink of sleep hereafter,  if you will  not plead my innocence
and avenge the death of hundreds of my community brothers  by  bringing  the real culprits to book .
Please do not sleep over the matter . Otherwise our community will always be taken for granted by everyone.

        

My Wanderings - 66. Short Story No. 46 My Inspiration my Friend

Not all in this world who wander are lost , but some while wandering find themselves and the  friends who become their life long  treasures and most cherished assets because they inspire them to the eternity   . There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship. We should always be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming Gardners who make our souls blossom .I could find many wonderful friends during the course of my Wanderings to whom I am very grateful and obliged for  their cooperation and support  and making my Wanderings   successful and magnificent . Their suggestions and comments have helped me to improve it a lot.  But as it is said that  a  single flower  can be a garden to me , a single friend my world . I will give here a description of my single friend who inspired me most .  I am not  obliged to the reader to mention the name of person who inspired me most as inspiration is an abstract entity which has no  form or sex and can not be  personified.
However ,  I may confer  my inspiration a female  form here.
A beautiful woman delights the eye; a wise woman , the understanding ; a pure one, the soul.
She is blend of all these virtues in a fair mix .
She is very  graceful , intelligent , and commanding with an aura of purity hovering around her . She is quick witted ,  humourous and . spontaneous . She can drive  any discussion to its logical conclusion by her crisp wit and reason. She is an epitome of gratification and benevolence . She is devoid of ego , a personification of humility . She is a good listener , analytical and extempore speaker . She has wandered all along with me through out my journey and supported me zealously with encouragement and inspiration .
I have never seen her in blood and flesh. Once I tried to arrange a meeting with her . She was ready to meet me . But it was hostile weather which dissuaded us from meeting  each other . However, It  was naive  of me  not to understand  that inspirations are with out  form or shape and they can not meet a mortal person like me.
I don't require meeting her,  because I feel her presence all around me now.
Yes I have seen her in my dreams  . She is very fair with a tuft of dark hair flanking over her round shoulders , wearing a matching designer suit making  a spectacle of contrast . Her white sparkling teeth shine like pearls , her eyes just like lotus petals and lips like blazing embers of fire. She is so sweet as honey and so soft as dew. Her heart is made of gold , not only her heart but she is worth her weight equal to  gold . She is beautiful , passionate  and sensual . I have learnt a lot from her.  I have become her ardent fan . She attends every person with due care and respect  . She is patient and sympathetic towards every one.
I can feel her presence all over in the nature .  She is a feeling which can be noted  only by soul. I can see her in celestial bodies . She can be a moon or star . I  can feel her presence in chirping of birds,  rustling of leaves , howling of  wind and flash of lightening .  I can smell her scent in the early spring flower buds , her caresing in first drizzle of monsoon , her warmth in the mild sun rays of autumn .
She is moving all along with me   so that I may not get lost in my Wanderings .  She is always there to guide and support me with all honesty .  she will continue it till eternity . Because such type  of love and inspirational stories have no end .

My Wanderings - 65 Short Story No.- 45. A Tale of Valour and Honour

I am interested in writing this story for two important   reasons,  first  the hero of this story belonged to my neighbourhood that is Purshyar Habba Kadal Srinagar and the second that he resurrected  the faith of a person who was also  from  Kashmir, a place  for which I still have a  soft corner.
Maj. Gen. S.K.Razdan  of elite parachute troopers para commando actually belonged to Purshyar, but his father had left Kashmir much earlier and was posted near Mathura. Therefore, Razdan sahab was brought up and educated in Mathura. But he used to visit his ancestral home at Purshyar occasionally ,where his grandparents lived till late. He was almost of my age but he appeared much  thinner and timid in his teens as per the boys of his age. Later on I came to know that Razdan sahab joined Indian Army.  It was all a matter of chance that he saw his friend filling the form of Indian Defence services in the college library ,while he had started post-graduation course in Mathematics. After passing the examination Razdan sahab was selected in Army. After various postings in Army Razdan sahab was sent to Kashmir in year 1995, when the militancy was at its peak there . He was then Lt Colonel in the army  . He used to move in the quazigund  market quite oftenly with out uniform . He looked like an ordinary  Kashmiri Muslim to most of people there because of his Kashmiri features  . Once sipping tea on a tea shop, two unknown persons sat near his table and started conversation with him .
"Sir we know that you  originally  belong to Kashmir  and you are  presently  serving in army"  , said one of them.   Razdan sahab had no other alternative but to listen them patiently .
" We have come with a request to you and hope you will listen  to us and take some action in this regard   and help us out of  this problem ", said another. Razdan sahab nodded his head in affirmation and advised  them to narrate their story .
Sir, terrorists have taken  ten girls from the most  respected families of the area to their hideout for the last several months . They are not releasing them despite of requests from various quarters in this connection .  We want that army should launch an operation against those terrorists so that girls are rescued  with out disclosing their identity and  their families honour is saved . 
Razdan sahab after taking some clues about the location  of hideout ,  assured them of  his full cooperation in the matter and took their leave .
It was only after some time Razdan sahab managed to attack the hideout in question alongwith his team. The hide out of terrorists was a two story building which was cordoned off by the army .  Razdan sahab himself  entered the building with another army personnel after overpowering the guards on the gate .They could locate the girls on the first story of the building ,who were preparing meals . The girls were taken in to confidence and advised that they have come for their rescue and are  going to release them .  The girls confided them that all the militants are having meeting in the upper story of house and they were preparing  food for them.
In the mean time militants came down and attacked Razdan sahab and his accomplice . Attack was of great intensity and Razdan sahab fell down and lost his conscience .
Razdan sahab regained his  conscience at the base military hospital Badami Bagh, where he came to know about  the success of operation . The Girls were rescued and sent to their respective places  secretly, with out disclosing their identity  as per the prior  instructions of Razdan sahab. Various militants  were killed in the operation and a few escaped . Two army personals were also martyared in the operation including the accomplice of Razdan sahab , who first entered the  hideout.
Razdan sahab was seriously injured in this operation , his lower limbs got paralysed . He was sent to various army hospitals for specialised treatment but he could not recover the strength of his lower limbs . He was confined to wheel chair  through out his life . Razdan  sahab was awarded Kirti chakra by the Govt. for his valour in this operation . He finally retired as Major General in  army and is now living his retired life at Gurugoan.
While undergoing treatment at Pune Army Hospital, some  parents of the girls whom he had rescued once came to meet him and expressed their  gratitude . They were much obliged to Razdan sahab for not disclosing the identification of their families .They even offered financial help to him for treatment . But Razdan sahab politely declined  their help , as army hospitals were looking after his treatment in a better way .

My Wanderings - 64. Short Story No - 44. The Scapegoat

The ethos and pathos     reflected in the present story may appear  distinct to the  new generation in terms of change in values due to inception of much permissiveness in   society   but not distant from the psychology  of human behaviour , which may not have changed much .
It was in late seventies in Srinagar  Sudhir, a meek and humble youngman after completing graduation got a job in central Govt Deptt with much struggle in terms of  interviews and written tests  and undertaking many casual and temporary occupations earlier  . It was really a herculean task to find a job those days, because of limited resources and job  opportunities prevalent  in the valley.
Sudhir could not adjust himself in the new environment  of his office mostly represented by his middle aged colleagues, with their weird  mentality and biased outlook. They could make fun out of any thing and even at the cost of some ones honour and pride. They were always looking for a chance to let down any one amongst themselves even and create something substantial   out of insignificant incidents , which could be overlooked otherwise by a normal person. Sudhir heard many tales of deceit and treachery employed by them with each other. If somebody submitted a fraud medical bill , other would surely complain about it to the head office . One of the colleagues of Sudhir was helping his father , who was having a cloth shop , after office hours . But another colleague got jealous of this and managed to conceal himself in a building opposite to the shop for several hours with a camera to take the photograph of his colleague selling cloth with a yard stick in  his hand and  with the intention of catching him red handed. Then the photograph was sent to Head office with an anonymous complaint .But Head office took little cognisance of such complaint due to the good luck of former.
A colleague of Sudhir once confided to him   that one  of their colleagues named Mr Pran Nath was  suffering from stomach cancer and was  in hospital for the last two months . There were  very rare chances of his  survival   and his wife has passed away already few  years back. Moreover , he had  two grownup children a son and a daughter to look after . Sudhir had never seen Pran Nath but could spare some time to express sympathy with him and the family . Sudhir could perceive that office people were having only lip sympathies about the condition and circumstances of Pran Nath but most of them were discussing about his weirdness and treacheries which he exhibited ,   when he was Hale and hearty . Sudhir had never seen Pran Nath and therefore, he had no other alternative but to believe on hearsay only.
Once Sudhir overheard the discussion going on, between his senior colleagues,  in the office and he got intrested when somebody was talking about him.
" Yes Sudhir is the best choice for the purpose . He is most gentle and loyal." , Said one.
"Oh let us help our friend and colleague in the hour of distress ". replied other, " Sudhir is the best choice for his daughter. "
" Let us take Sudhir with us to  hospital and fix the marriage in presence of Pran Nath ." " He will also have a good look at sudhir."retorted back another."
"Pran Nath will get relieved from the tension of his daughter   and he will die quite peacefully. Moreover, it will be the most rightous and kind service  rendered to our friend and colleague on our part.
No body made any objection. Everything was considered as settled . The pleasures of so benevolent a scheme were enjoyed by everyone .
While listening to the decision of his fate being decided  by his colleagues, Sudhir got worried . Sudhir had never thought about his marriage as yet. He could not venture to say no to his senior colleagues that too in this noble cause , which they were going to thrust upon him. How he will be able to convince his parents, he thought. Moreover, he had never seen the girl.
Only one person came to the rescue of Sudhir. It was the same colleague , who had first confided him about the condition of Pran Nath.
"So they are trying to  become  philanthropists  by making you a scapegoat. ", He said to Sudhir, " i wont let them do that at your cost and against your will.
He reprimanded them one by one. He convinced them that marriage is not a child's play. Parents consent is foremost in such matters . You are no body to decide his fate . The proposal of marriage was stopped then and there . Sudhir heaved a sigh of relief and thanked him.
Then after the death of Pran Nath, his son Vinay was appointed in the same office on compassionate grounds.  He became fast friend of Sudhir as they were  almost  of the same age. As both friends lived in the same area they started visiting each others dwellings . Sudhir got acquainted with the sister of Vinay also. She appeared well mannered , intelligent and very beautiful to Sudhir. They started liking each other . Vinay was also intrested in their marriage. He gave time and space to them to know each other better. But never mentioned about it to Sudhir .Sudhir  wanted to marry her now and therefore, sought permission of his mother for  getting married to the girl of his choice . But his mother declined the proposal at the  beginning  as she did not want to marry her  only son to an orphan girl . Sudhir was left with no other alternative but to forget the girl. The  friendship continued between the two i.e . Vinay and Sudhir but relationship never matured . No body  mentioned about the proposal of  marriage from either side and thus honour was redeemed  at the expense of the sentiments of two.

My Wanderings - 63. Short Story No 43. Paradox of Badri Nath

                      Badri Nath Pandita  was a very methodical person right from  the beginning and  sometimes scornful of the prevailing  system during his times . He was born in a  poor and large family,  being last but one  among his other seven siblings. He was first in his family who graduated and got a job in state Govt. He looked after his parents nicely untill they left this mortal world  quite peacefully .
Badri Nath   had risen to the position of an Office superintendent in his Deptt. by the dint of his hard labour , punctuality and decipline. Moreover, he was  honest to the core. The persons working under him had made fortunes but he neither  compromised with his principles nor obliged anyone for a treat or favour. However, his Deptt.was usually considered by compromising people as source for minting money.
He was so honest that if he  had some departmental letter addressed to himself,  he would enter it properly in the peon book and then only after his proper acknowledgement he would receive it. Once there was an inspection of his section , Inspector was not able to find any irregularity  despite of his best efforts in this regard as he had to justify his visit. Finally he visited the urinal and found nephthaline  balls missing there and pointed out the same irregularity.  Badri Nath sent two peons immediately  to purchase the nephthaline balls in the market. But nephthaline balls  could not be found. He then ordered them  to make  white  paper balls in the shape of nephthaline balls and kept them in urinal and got his irregularity removed from the shrewd Inspector.   Sometimes people, on his back,  made fun of  his methods but nobody ,including his superiors ,  ventured  to argue in front of him. He was methodical in his family life also. His wife was very generous and devoted lady who would be ever ready to fulfill the whims and fancies of her husband . They had only two children , when other couples of their age had not  less than four or five children during those days . Badri Nath   had planned  his family properly  when no body was aware of the word  family planning . Those days there was no restriction from  Govt or society  to plan  the family. Moreover , one had  to bear the ire of family or society who opted for this. He married his daughter, who was elder to his son at a very young age only after she  completed  some basic education. He was not also much particular about the education of his son  and let him grow with  his own  natural  faculties . Moreover , Badri Nath  was much against arranging private tuition for his  children, about which people had started to get awareness. It was not because Badri Nath  could  not afford to arrange private tuition for his only son but it was against his principles . The son of Badri Nath   was very intelligent. He always stood first in the class. Badri Nath    was not much  interested in securing   a seat for him in professional college either  . He  made up his mind  that after graduation, his son will  join some office at his native place  and get promoted in due course of time. He thought that he will marry  him with a simple girl so that he   remains  always with him.
One day Badri Nath's  wife ventured to have an arguement with her husband for the sake of her only  son.
"Why don't you try to get your son admitted in some professional college?,she said hesitantly.
" I don't want that my son should become an engineer , and get married to the daughter of  some   affualent family , so that I will loose my son for ever." he retorted back, " I want my son to be with me in my old age also.
" You are trying to be selfish here  ", she said with indignation. " No father in this world will be ever jealous of his son's progress like you."
"I am not jealous of his progress , but I want him to be with me", replied Badri Nath with  determination .
It was really very difficult to argue with Badri Nath ,  which his wife knew very well and therefore , She  herself stopped  the arguement voluntarily and got busy with other chores of  her house. 
Here it will be pertinent to tell the  reader about  those days when  professional colleges were few and far within the country . It was really difficult to get admission in those  colleges . But if admitted it ensured a better career opportunities  and a wife from affualent family for the eligible person.
The viewpoint of Badri Nath  regarding career of his son  appeared very absurd and rediculous  to his wife , friends and relatives but none dared to  argue with him in this regard.
While people make plans for future of their wards , destiny plays its own  role in  building the career of  eligible students, sometimes,  in complete contradiction with their  propositions.
As already advised son of Badri Nath was very  intelligent , he secured second  position in his intermediate exams  . He got nomination in reputed engineering  college outside Kashmir along with Govt.scholarship  for study purposes . Now Badri Nath  was left with no other alternative but to send his son for engineering training outside Kashmir. He had to bow before destiny ,  despite of all his reluctance in this regard.
Then all the forecasts of Badri Nath began to realise in  due course of time. Only after completing engineering his son got a placement in American company and he shifted  there within a very short period. He got married to a girl from a very affualent family of Kashmiri Pandits , who were already settled in states . He remained in touch with his parents for some time but in due course of time  he was lost in the limelight and hectic life of America . Badri Nath and his wife grew old and lived lonely life in their native city , longing for the occasional visits of their daughter and son in law , who also lived in the same city coincidentally .
One day Badri Nath felt himself in a  Paradox , a  seemingly absurd or contradictory statement or proposition which when investigated may prove to be well founded or true .
At the fag end of his life he  realised the truth of his conviction , which appeared absurd to most of the people around him including his wife once upon a time.
It was really true and well founded, he murmured with himself.
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My Wanderings - 62. Short Story No. 42. The Canteen Boy

This story reflects some of the  unique anecdotes  of my life which I had to encounter   during my official  tenure at  Srinagar  city after migration of our community from    Kashmir.  It was only in late nineties when I was transferred to Jawahar Nagar Srinagar  Branch of my Bank from Pathankot and was posted there as Manager operations . Due to militancy all  the outside staff was required to stay in a pooled accommodation in Banks Guest House located near  Badami Bagh cantonment . There was also a proper mess and transport facility provided to us . Banks hired vehicles available  would take  us to different branches in the morning  and bring us back to Guest house in the  evening . We were much  skeptikle about our posting  because of much hostile atmosphere around. Only after our  first night stay at the  Guest House , we heard about the gruesome massacre of  Wandhama  in which twenty six members of  our community were murdered . This incident laid a deep impact on our minds and we felt more concerned about our security . However, in due course of time  we became accustomed to the  circumstances and could discharge our duties in a quite congenial way  . The evenings were mostly spent in the company of our  colleagues playing indoor games , discussing  current affairs or sharing day to day branch experiences with each other .
In the mean time I developed friendship with one of my colleagues who was senior to me and  was staying in  Guest House  much earlier  than my arrival thereat.   His actual name was Mohan Kadalbuju , but he was usually addressed as Buju  sahab . He used to stay alone in one room while all other rooms were shared by two persons normally .  After office hours he usually  confined himself to his room and was noticed always  busy with his books . He was a voracious reader. He used to read books on every  subject on earth . Recently he had developed Interest  in Kashmiri Shivism . I visited his room sometimes to listen to his lectures .  He  also gave me  counseling  occasionally , whenever I faced  any problem at the branch. He had a  very good knowledge and experience of Banking . His advise always helped me . He was having only one bad habit  that he was not  a good listener. He could lecture on any subject and keep his audience spell bound for hours together , but if somebody from audience wanted to express his views he would immediately find some excuse to leave the meeting to the astonishment of all. Only the habit of not listening to others had made him unpopular among his colleagues .
After some time I was transferred as Branch Manger to Rainawari Branch , which was  shifted from its actual location Rainawari and was working from Zonal office Srinagar since long , due to explosion of  various bombs at its original venue. Some time after taking the charge of Branch by me, management of our Bank decided to shift the Branch to its original location which was really an ordeal for me. 
The premises for Branch could not be found at its  original location .But a very spacious branch premises was identified near Saida kadal one and a half Kms away from Kathi Darwaza.  Lease  deed was signed by me and the landlord in Srinagar High court and  Within shortest possible time all the cabins and counters were installed in the premises and Branch was shifted there. Here it will be worthwhile to mention the name of a  casual labourer ' Irfan 'who used to work for us at shifted premises for some small renumeration . He helped  us  relentlessly in shifting of the Branch along with other permanent Bank staff.
Once during these days, Buju sahab said to me, " you have now discretion of appointing a Canteen Boy for the branch."
At once name of Irfan came into my mind. Yes Irfan will be best for the post.He is already familiar with us, I thought.
"What are you thinking about? said Buju sahab .
"I was thinking about appointment of canteen Boy"' I retorted back.
" You have not to worry about that, I know one person,  you can send his recommendation . You have to do this job for me."
" But what about Irfan?He is much hopeful. Moreover, he deserves it," said I.
"No you have to recommend my Man , I have made a comment ment to him. You have to do it anyhow".
Next morning , while I was working at the branch, Regional Secretary of staff Association along with his team arrived at the branch and requested me to appoint one 'Akram' as Canteen Boy  as we have made commitment with him. Please do us a favour, they implored upon me.
My staff was intrested in appointing ' Irfan 'as Canteen Boy. I thought over it for some time and decided to go with the  choice of Staff Association as I could not afford to confront Staff Association in such already hostile atmosphere.
Then I send recommendations for appointment of      'Akram ' as Canteen boy annoying my staff as  well as Buju sahab .  One of my Staff members confided to me that this boy 'Akram 'was an ex-militant and he  has been  already imprisoned  for exploding a Bomb at some other branch of the Bank. I told him straight away that nothing can be done now as I have already send my recommendation and approval of which may be received by us within a day or two.
After few days 'Akram ' joined the branch. Prima facie ,he apperead to me much arrogant and rude ,perhaps because of my already biased outlook against  him and  I regretted my decision . But within a short   span of time he became indispensable for branch. He was so polite , helpful and hardworking  that every staff member of branch began to like him.
One day in order to satisfy my curiosity , I asked him about the allegation of  Bomb explosion against him.
He replied to me, " Sir, a permanent employee of that Branch was actually involved in Bomb explosion  . If he had been apprehended by police , he could have lost his job. I being a temporary employee was made the scapegoat and Association told me to accept the crime . They made a comment ment with me that after my release from Jail , I will be again appointed as Canteen Boy in some other Branch .
The polite behaviour of 'AKRAM' which I had noticed myself while working with him and all other circumstances related with his appointment left me with out any reason not to beleive his  statement. 

My Wanderings - 61. Short Story No. 41. The Mystery behind the House Burglary

This story is of long ago,  when I was small child of five or six years old. My father was posted as a Doctor in Pattan, a small hemlet then, situated  on the national highway leading from Srinagar to Baramulla.  My father had shifted his family to Srinagar for some time  and he was living  there alone .
Once during my school holidays, I accompanied him  to visit the village for few days. My father was a very  busy person , after hospital hours  , he used to visit far off patients on a Tonga or horse back , whatever the transport facility the villagers could provide him. Most of the time I used to play in Hospital compound and when my father had to visit some patient I remained at home alone playing with empty injection bottles and their packages. My  Father was living as a tenant  in  newly constructed bungalow of  village head located on main road. He  after arriving home , used to enquire from me daily whether somebody had visited the house in his absence . I usually replied him in negative  after shaking my head . One day a prank cropped in my mind and I nodded my head in affirmation.
"Who was it" ?
"Kaen tchoor, the thief", I replied with confidence.
"What for he had come here, had he touched anything here."
"Yes he touched it, "replied I , pointing towards some furniture items .
Had I anticipated the enormity  of its consequences , I would not have ventured to play such a prank . 
Here I feel obliged  to reader for giving the details of burglar . The' Ahad tchoor' and 'Kaen tchoor'  , the two burglars were actually real brothers . They were living with their mother in a newly constructed two story house on the outskirts of village. They were very notorious burglars . 'Ahad tchoor 'was elder brother and 'Kaen tchoor 'was younger one. They had vowed never to burgle any house of their native village. Their area of operation was a  big city or  or town  like Srinagar or Baramulla. Elder brother was more  professional and remained mostly in jails . Their modus operandi of burglary was unique . They would mostly accomplish their job in broad day light . Once they entered a house clad in burqa , a veil usually worn by Muslim ladies, no body took much notice of them as there were two families living in the house. One housewife washing clothes on the gate  thought that they must be the guests of other dweller of house . In the mean time they started collecting the goods , when some body noticed them . They took the collected goods and jumped from the window. But due to bad luck they fell on Iron wire fence and cut their legs  . They were caught and Police was called . The Police escorted them to the Police station . While in handcuffs and blood oozing out  from the wounds of  their legs , they called a grape vendor  in the way and snatched a bunch of grapes from him.  They finally reached the Police station while  enjoying the taste of grapes .
Once I had seen the  elder brother 'Ahad Tchoor 'wearing a grey suit and a goggle , handcuffed,  surrounded by two police men  taken in a police vehicle  from Srinagar  to Baramulla for court attendance . He stopped the vehicle near his native village , waved at the people and bought goods and clothes from a shop  for his mother , who apperead from somewhere in the crowd to collect them.
Now reverting to the incident I was referring to ....
My father immediately rushed to the police station and reported the matter to Police  SHO , who earnestly believed my theory because elder brother was in jail and only younger brother was moving around in the village .Had I mentioned about the elder brother,  he would not have believed.    The SHO was my father's friend and therefore , with out loosing any time,  he   deputed two police men for the job. They first visited our residence and asked me few questions . After satisfying themselves they left for the tirade. It was hardly after a gap of an hour 'Kaen Tchoor 'was apprehended. He was caught playing cards with his accomplices in the backyard of his house . He was unaware of the developments which destiny had planned   against him. Therefore,  he was taken by a surprise. But the two policemen caught hold of him and began to remand him in the police custody .
In the meantime sun had set and our land lord, who was a village head also  , called a meeting of village elders  on the main road in front of our  house. He looked very furious and was saying something in a very loud voice while stretching both his hands often,  which I could hardly understand at that age but whatever I comprehended  was that my prank had taken a very serious turn , which can not be retrieved by me at any cost. Therefore , I have to remain sticked to my version of events.
Next day I accompanied my father to the hospital . Every shopkeeper in the way was looking curiously at me as the news had spread like fire in the whole village . I was walking  on the street,  accompanied by my father,  expanding my chest to the enormous proportions like Don Quixote with out much conscious of the implications and gravity of the situation.
In the mean time my father advised Police SHO to release the Burglar  as he had not stolen anything from our  house.  The burglar was released after detaining him for  one night in the police custody  and his head was shaved as a punishment. 
After releasing from the Police station, the burglar came directly to meet my father and asked for his  apology and subsequently  pleaded  his innocence.
He also interviewed me. He said , how you can say it was me only and not any one  else. I remain sticked to my point and never retreated from it as that was  only safe for me.
He said to me, " what I was wearing when I entered the house."?
I looked at his dress , which i still remember , it was a dark coloured pathani dress with a green  embroidered waist coat .
I told him that it was the same pointing towards his dress.
It was  only after a very long time  when I had grown up , I disclosed the secret behind the mystery of burglary to my father , for which  he reprimanded me seriously .

My Wanderings - 60. Short story No.- 40. Myopia

Brij Krishen screwed up his eyes as he peered across  the dimness of his house dining room . He was slightly short sighted of which he had taken little notice so far. He was already using specs for reading books and newspapers since his retirement from a public sector  but had  never faced such a type of problem earlier.   He was  experiencing a mixed feelings of joy and  gloominess  today as he had visited his childhood friend Ram Krishen , a renowned business man , after  long time. He was happy because he had met his childhood friend but gloomy because he had discovered that he was no match to his friend and has lagged far behind him in affluence and prosperity. It was not only clinical problem of his eyes but literally he was regretting for his myopic outlook maintained by him throughout his life   and opted  for a salaried  job with a meagre income as compared to his friend.
Moreover , Ram Krishen looked very young and pleasant by appearance,  thought Brij Krishen and it was a natural sequence after that to glance at his own appearance in the mirror that happened ,most conveniently,  to hang just besides the table . What he saw there put him in further grief . How dreadfully he had changed ? Brij  Krishen was by nature a very  sociable man . Throughout his life he had remained seperate from his wife  and children because of his transferable job. Brij Krishen had always worked hard, harder perhaps than was good for his health . He had worn out as his wife had.  He had a tired and haggard look after facing the vagaries of life . There was a lot of white in his hair. His wife had also suffered  no less .She had looked after the house and  children meticulously in the absence of Brij Krishen .
Now after his retirement  he was looking forward to live ever with his loving  wife . What a happy and peaceful life they would have together. Well perhaps peaceful was overstating it. Family life was never quite peaceful .Infectious  illnesses , vagaries of fate  and other problems were there in abundance . Life really was a series of petty dramas .
Still after all, that was life  And now with the children married and getting a good pension himself  , Brij Krishen could take things more easily .
As Brij Krishen  was at the threshold of bliss of life , the thoughts of his friend made his life miserable. He was having more than enough to look after the needs of himself and his loving wife  but he could never live  peacefully ever after his encounter  with his friend Ram krishan . He always regretted his myopic outlook when he compared his life with that of  his friend . This complex worked upon his nerves so hard  that he began to show signs of depression which naturally effected the peaceful life of his wife also.  He made her  life also miserable. She consulted various doctors but of no avail.
One day Ram Krishen also visited Brij Krishen's house to enquire about his health. Brij  Krishen felt  embarrassed  to see his friend because of his small abode  and humble belongings . Ram Krishen appeared not to be taking much notice of what his friend was thinking about. He was rather envious of his friends peaceful life which he confided  to him quite frankly. He admitted to his friend that he was not living a peaceful life himself because of various business occupations.  He was not able to give much time to his family and hobbies.  No doubt he is earning much more than an average  person but his life is devoid of peace and happiness,  which no money on earth can  buy. 
With these words Ram Krishen left the residence of his friend, leaving the latter in utter confusion.
Brij Krishen pondered over the utterances   of his friend for  a long time   and later  on  reality dawned upon him. He felt relieved of tension which was looming large  over his head for quite a long time. He also purchased new glasses for himself which corrected his myopia . He began to see his life with a different point of view . He felt grateful towards his family and possessions and began to live a happy and peaceful life thereafter .