INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN...258

INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN…258
Dr K Prabhakar Rao

(Gandhi, Nehru and Patel are strolling on Delhi Road near Rajghat in the evening. They are followed by a street dog )

Nehru. Bapu. A dog is following us. I am scared. It may bite me.

Patel. Relax, Jawaharlal, Why it will only bite you? Does it have any enmity with you?. Have you thrown a stone at it?

Nehru. Patel Bhai. You are seeing me. I have not done any thing. Why it will be my enemy?

Patel. Then relax. Please do not get upset. We are strolling on this road. It also must be going somewhere. It is a chance that we are together.

Gandhi. ( Looks back) The dog appears to be docile. I is not aggressive. Why worry about it?

Nehru. Any how, I am sure that Municipal corporation of Delhi is not bothered about Rajghat road. Dogs are roaming free on this road. Bapu, this is the place where your pious grave is there.

Patel. Please do not call grave. Bapu was not buried here. He was cremated and what stands here is a memorial.

Gandhi. Patel is correct. I was not buried.

( In the mean time, the stray dog tries to enter Rajghat Bapu samdhi gate and is stopped by the gate watchman)

Watchman. Shh..Shh.. Get away.. Get off you bloody dog. Get out

( The watchman throws a stone at the dog and it is injured at the leg and it bleeds.The dog pounces on him and bites. Gandhi sees it. He goes to the watchman)

Gandhi. Bhai. What is this? Why you have hit the dog?

Watchman. I am Pyarelal. It was entering Rajghat, the Samadhi area.ee..eee….It has bitten me .

Gandhi. Good thing it has done. Any how so what? What will happen if it enters?

Pyarelal. It dirties the area and park. It may bite some people and children who visit this place.eee…eee…aa.aaa…How about me ..I am bitten.

Gandhi. Look. You must show compassion to fellow living beings. This is the place of Samadhi of MK Gandhi, i.e me. I lived and died for compassion. But this is not reflected here. How bad and how sad?

Pyarelal. Ye.. What all nonsense you are talking? How this belongs to you? You appear to be a crank. Go away and do not spoil my day and mood. I have better things to do. The dog has bitten me..ee..ee..e…eeeee……aaaa….aaaaa…..aaa.

Gandhi. You appear to be some strange one. You are so rude to aged people. I can imagine the fate of visitors here. I may have to report against you.

Pyarelal. Go and do whatever you want to do. Nothing you can do. I have seen many guys like you. Can anything happen in this country? So many guys of Govt are facing charges of corruption. What can happen to them. All will be finally freed. Aaa..aaa… It is paining .ee..eee..ee.

Patel. Bapu. He is telling truth. Let us leave. Who will bother for our complaint. Why struggle with such cranks? You will find many like him around. This area is full of samdhis and parks. Every where you shall find such guys. These are smashan ghats ( Cremation grounds) and not parks of recreation. Only serious guys visit here and these guys do not get tips. So they are irked up. All other public places they get something. Poor guys is bitten by the dog..

Bapu.Why he is poor.. He may get gallantry award for this. What to do? Let us go from here. I feel upset.

Patel. Bapu. Whata re you talking. How he will get Gallatry award?

Gandhi. Why not. When police guys who got shot in vehicles without even retaliating against terrorists are given Gallantry aawards as ashok Chakras, why not this guy?

Patel. Hee..hee . True. Bapu, Youa re very correct

Gandhi. I am always correct. Let us go.

( They keep walking away and find the dog again following them)

Bapu. Patel. What is this?. The dog is again after us.

Nehru. Bapu. Let us shoe it off. I am scared .

Bapu. Please do not do it.Don’t you know. It has bitten the watch man when he a threw a stone at it. There must be some thing in it. Are you carrying any eatable in your pocket?

Patel. Ohfo. Nothing like that.Jawahar must be having something.

Nehru. I too do not have any thing.

( Bapu stops and whistles to the dog. It approaches him wagging the tail)

Bapu. What is that you want from us? Why are you after us?

Dog. Bow..wow..

Nehru. Wow..Bow

(The dog snarls at him)

Bapu. Relax. Tell me what you want? Why are you following us?

( The dog speaks in human voice)

Dog. Sir, In my previous birth I was Natkhatram and I belonged to UP. I was your follower inmost of the agitations during freedom struggle.

Gandhi. Then what happened?

Dog. I left your party and joined another party as I thought freedom was being delayed.

Gandhi. Then?

Dog. I again changed party. This happened four times and in one of the police firings I died

Gandhi. Oh Sorry. How sad?

Dog. Thanks sir for your concern.

Gandhi. Why are you in this form now?

Dog. I changed many parties and I was not loyal to any one party. Therefore after my death and suffering in hell I was given this dogs birth. I was born near a dust bin at Kashmri Gate.

Patel. So it is clear that those who keep changing parties will take birth of a dog after they die. Hee..heee..

Gandhi. At this rate we will be having many dogs in the country.

Patel. True. In every place in India, population of dogs is increasing. Census has declared this fact.
Nehru. I am lucky. I have not changed party in my life time. Patel, You are also lucky.

Patel. I am least concerned. There are other forms that are worst than a dog’s birth. Do you think changing party is the only sin in life? How do you think that you have not committed any other sin?

Gandhi. What Patel says is very true. Why bother for it when you don’t have control over it.

Nehru. It is OK.

Gandhi. Now things are clear to me why this dog followed us. It recognized us. Thanks to you doggy. What is your name now?

Dog. I have no master. I roam on streets. But some street urchins call me shaggy

Patel. That is good .OK Shaggy. Thanks for following us and telling things.

Shaggy. Thanks sir. Shall I be with you always.

Nehru. No.. No..

Gandhi. It will not be proper. We do not stay in one place and it becomes difficult to feed you .

Shaggy. That is OK. I shall not be a burden to you. I shall take care of me. OK Sir . Bye. Now I have to see what I shall become in my next birth.

Gandhi. OK Bye. Take care of yourself.

( Shaggy scampers away and finds a female companion soon.)

Nehru. Bapu. Do you believe what the dog said?

Gandhi. Must be true. It spoke in our voice.

Nehru. I am worried and scared too.

Patel. Why do you worry on which you have no control?

Gandhi. Sing Ramdhun and relax. Let us go

(The trio wakls away singing Ramdhun)

CURTAIN FALLS