THE NIGHT

(This post is a pure piece of fiction. Any resemblance to any person - living or dead , is purely co-incidential and absolutely unintentional.)

 

 

 

      Naam – the reputation of your paltan (Regiment) is a strange thing. There are recorded instances when the “naam” of a paltan has been upheld right up to the last man alive- in situations where it was known that victory was impossible. It has been carried forward by generations in other cases – hanging onto a single torn piece of cloth – the last remaining evidence of the valour and bravery of their fathers and forefathers. Even though 90% of the population of the country would never even know that such a paltan existed but 400 odd trained and motivated men would willingly lay down their lives for the sake of the “naam” of their paltan and at times – take a life too!

The Night

      It was a cold dark night somewhere in Punjab. The phone call had been frantic. There was a tinge of panic in the voice of the Tiger as he asked Akshay to come to the base of Alpha company. Two terrorists had been picked up in a covert operation carried out by Alpha company and in the not-so-humane questioning that had followed, one of them had lost consciousness. Akshay wondered what could have gone wrong as his 4x4 rumbled along the broken path leading to Alpha company. He firmly believed that the only good terrorist was a dead terrorist. He wondered if the Tiger wanted these two to be “taken care of” and whether he would be asked to do so. Somehow, he had always avoided getting into such situations in the past – it seemed demeaning to kill a captured terrorist. The only way to fight or kill was after giving him a fair chance to fight back. As his vehicle pulled into the base he was met by Ranjit – the commander of Alpha company. Perspiration showed on his forehead even though it was a cold night. No words were exchanged as Akshay walked up to the room where the body of the unconscious man lay. He opened the closed eyes of the man and flashed his torch onto the pupils – the eyes were visibly dilated. There was an apology of a pulse on his wrist. A jawan held a thin plastic pipe inserted into the nostrils of the man trying to get oxygen inside.

      “I didn’t do anything” murmured Ranjit as he and Akshay walked out of the room. Jamwal, the youngster who had just got commissioned into the paltan a few weeks ago had been conducting the interrogation of the now-not-so-conscious man. He stood next to the body trying desperately to work a miracle and blow life into the body – sometimes pumping his chest and sometimes trying CPR. Fear danced in his eyes mimicking the flickering flame of the kerosene bottle which lit the room. He had just been exonerated in a case in which an innocent had been shot after mistaking him to be a militant. And now this man lay in front of him – his life ebbing away. Akshay bumped into Rohit as he walked out. “He’s gone”, was all he whispered as Rohit refused to enter the room.

      The Tiger reached the location within a few minutes along with Purohit – his staff officer. No pleasantries were exchanged as he walked into the room. As he checked the pulse of the man, it stopped altogether – as if the man had been waiting for him to come and die in his arms. Panic ensued – six men commissioned by the President of India to be officers of the Indian Army tried frantically to become a mix of Doogie Howser and Mother Teresa - unsuccessfully.

      It had been half an hour since the incident – half an hour of deafening silence as the five sat together in a state of total loss of words. “So what should we do now?” asked the Tiger, something very unusual from a man who was accustomed to dictating what he wanted others to do. Akshay spoke up first, “Sir, it’s out of question that we declare what has happened – especially after the incident where Jamwal shot the civilian. No one will accept blood on our hands again and so soon at that”. Silence followed as everyone pondered over what had been said. Ranjit asked if an encounter could be faked to turn the deaths into acceptable killings of militants. The silence that followed was shattered by Rohit’s merry ringtone. It was the DSP asking him if he had apprehended two workers of the youth wing of a political party. Elections were a week away and there was a lot of political pressure on him to find the missing men. Rohit refused. Atleast the identity of the two was confirmed now.

      Tears welled in Ranjit’s eyes as the helplessness of the situation dawned upon him. He was responsible for the incident and as if the Tiger had just intercepted his thoughts, he launched into a tirade of “I-told-you” at Ranjit. His ravings continued till he ran out of breath. Suddenly age showed on his face. Somehow, even in the dim light of the candle and the situation which existed, Akshay could see the resignation and despair on the once radiant and cheerful face that he would see at the golf course a few years ago. Responsibility and the pressure of leading such a team in operations could really weather a man within a year. He was jolted awake as the Tiger called out his name for the second time. “So what do you think should we do?” asked the Tiger. “Sir there are only two things – one, that we declare what has happened and be prepared for the consequences which will follow and the second, to kill the other person too and dispose off their bodies”. He was amazed at the ease with which these words came out of his mouth. Was he actually suggesting that they murder the second man too? “Help us to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong…”, the lines were ringing in his ears. He had recited them atleast a million times during the three years of training at NDA. His thoughts were cut by an “I agree with the second option” from Ranjit which was echoed by four others in the room. The six had just sentenced a human to death. No trial, no tribunal, no judge, no courtroom. Swift sentencing........ Or was it cold blooded murder!

      Declaring this incident would not only mean that the Tiger, Ranjit and Jamwal would be sealed as far as their career was concerned – to say the least. But it also meant disrepute for the paltan which had performed outstandingly in all operations prior to this. It had earned various commendations and was considered one of the best so far. Officers vied for taking over its command and others considered themselves lucky to be posted in it for regimental duties. Not only would all this be wiped off, but the present team would be remembered for ages to come for having been the lot to bring about its downfall. This incident and some others which would invariably come to light would make case studies which would be debated and discussed at training institutions and various fora across the services. The hardwork, dedication and patriotism of men who had given the best years of their life in service to their nation would be annulled and disreputed. The officers sat around huddled as all this and much more started to sink in - till each of them was convinced that this was the only option left.

      “The only difference”, thought Akshay, “was that after what they would do now, not only the ones responsible  for what had happened but all the others would also be guilty of what had transpired - to be jailed - not just dismissed from service, if caught”.

      The officers had left. The boss had left Akshay behind to oversee that everything was executed as planned. Ranjit had chosen his best men and they had been explained briefly by the Tiger on what was to be done after which the Tiger had also left. The second arms peddler was taken to a separate room and made to drink liquor till he passed out……and then stifled to death.

      The two bodies were stripped naked and covered with salt to help them decompose faster, thrown into a pit meant to be their grave and their belongings burnt.

      In the days to come, sleep became a prized commodity. Akshay stopped taking a bed sheet on his body when he’d sleep at night. It reminded him of the salt covered naked bodies in the pit. He could sleep in a pitch dark room - the darkness threatened to engulf him. He would think of the parents of the two whose only sons would never return home. He too had only one son and they had been told by the doctor that they may never be able to have another one due to a medical condition of his wife.

      It was six in the morning as Ranjit’s phone rang. His wife had slipped and fallen. She’d been rushed to the hospital and he’d been asked to come as soon as possible. As Ranjit boarded the plane, Rohit's phone rang. A dog had badly mauled him - his face would require reconstructive plastic surgery. Hundreds of kilometers away, the three year old son of Akshay ran to the bathroom to play with water. He loved the bubbles in the bath. His mother was on the phone talking to Akshay when they heard a thud in the bathroom. An ever increasing pool of blood covered the bathroom floor.

       Five years down the line, Jamwal’s received a call from his wife. He’d just finished a gruelling session of badminton and was going for a swim to the pool. His wife wanted some milk powder for their new born. He rushed to the pool to finish his swimming routine before going to the market. A few lengths of the pool tired him out completely - enough to ensure a sound sleep.

       Sometime later, as the cleaners started to switch off the lights of the  swimming pool, a body floated up. There was no pulse as they frantically tried to revive the drowned person. An officer had lost his life - their job was on the line of fire. Meanwhile, somebody’s revenge was complete ......