Perfect

“We’re perfect for each other!”

“Ha ha… why do you say so?”

“It’s obvious. You have to be blind or stupid to not see it.”

“Well, I’m not blind, so are you suggesting that I’m stupid?”

“Just like you to read a double meaning in something unintentional. All right, you tell me why we are not?”

“Why we are not what?”

“Not perfect.”

“It’s obvious.”

“No, it isn’t.”

“Yes, it is. You’re seeing things where there are none.”

“Look, we spend a lot of time together. We’re always laughing and it’s generally a good time when we hang out. We’re constantly in touch through whatsapp and phone calls. We’ve shared a lot of personal bits of our lives. We wouldn’t do that unless we were comfortable with each other and we trusted each other.”

“Agree. But, that’s not reason enough for me to get in to a relationship.”

“Oh, come on! It’s been ages since I’ve even kissed a girl.”

“See, the truth comes out. It’s physical for you, nothing else!”

“Yes, yes it is! I have to kiss you. I’m not ashamed of it. I’ve wanted to for many months now.”

“And after we’ve kissed?”

“We’ll kiss some more.”

“Ha ha… and after that?”

“Well, if you’d really like it then I could arrange for Ram’s room and you know maybe we could…”

“Could?”

“Roll around in bed a bit.”

“Ha ha… you know what I like about you. You are honest.”

“Good. See one more good thing about me.”

“You idiot. Fine, let me put it in words for you. After we’ve kissed and made out and whatever then what happens?”

“We’ll get married, have kids, send them away after a few years and then grow old with each other. Oh yes, there will be a lot of fighting along the way. I’ll usually win. It’s okay, I’m a generous winner. And the small things like buy a house, a car, settle down, lots and lots of love-making etc.”

“It’s all so simple for you na?”

“Isn’t that how it is for everyone?”

“Look, I don’t want to get in to something and have my heart broken again.”

“Me neither!”

“Yes, we’ve been through enough of that. So this time when I take a call I want to be dead serious about it. It’s final. I’m not going to change my mind. It has to be perfect.”

“I’m on the same page. And I think you are perfect for me. I think we are perfect for each other.”

“Look, I really like you… but…”

“But, I’m not perfect.”

“Please, don’t put it like that. Look you are funny, charming, intelligent, loving and gosh… I really don’t know why but it doesn’t feel right. Not yet at least.”

“You forgot ‘understanding’ in your list of attributes.”

“Oh yes, that also.”

“Are you waiting for prince charming again?”

“No, come on, don’t tease me.”

“Look, I know you’ve been through a lot. I’ve been very open about my past too. So you know where exactly I come from. Maybe I’m not the ‘prince-charming’. I know I’m not the greatest looker at all. But, I care about you. And, I think it could work between us.”

“Why do you hesitate?”

“Hesitate?”

“Hesitate to say you love me.”

“Oooo boy! Okay, here goes. Well, I’m afraid of getting my heart broken again.”

She reaches out to his hand on the table. They hold each other and look at each other. At that moment the waiter arrives.

“Is there anything else I can help you with?”

“No thanks. We’re perfect!”

Equinox

It wasn’t that day and night were of the same duration. The fact was that where day ended and night began (or vice-versa) had ceased to be of any relevance. It was equinox.

Life didn’t matter anymore, neither did death. Which was why he was where he was. He lit a cigarette, dragging it in slowly. He had to wait. He could wait. Time didn’t matter anymore. There was nothing to go back to.

He was aware of day and night and what each meant. But they had ceased to be of any relevance to him in a personal way. Day meant that the sun would be out and there would be light. Night meant that you had to arrange your own light- that’s it. He couldn’t remember when he’d last slept so there was no way his body clock could react to the rotations of the earth.

Hiding behind a rock he took out his binoculars and scanned the sea. He noticed a light flashing. It was morse code. He smiled to himself- it was the right place. He then scanned the beach. Up about a distance of a kilometer he could notice a boat with two men replying back in code by means of a torch light.

The two men slowly guided their boat in to the sea and made out towards their target. The rendezvous would be at sea. It would take time. He waited and while he did that the mind began to ponder.

He had wanted to surprise her. He remembered walking in to the house without making a sound and tip-toeing his way across all the rooms looking for her. Finally, he’d moved upstairs in to the bedroom and that is when his life had come crumbling down.

He realized it was trauma that kept bringing back that scene in to his memory. His heart was cold and he no longer had any emotion when he played the scene in his head. It came back to him out of sheer habit. It had numbed him.

He moved closer to the landing point. From a suitable distance he took out his rifle and took aim. He had a clear view. He then placed the rifle by his side and took out the binoculars to once more scan the horizon. It had taken 6 months of work to get to this point. Now it was within his grasp.

But, did it matter? Was he going to be happy once he’d accomplished his mission? What next? Was all this worth anything? How long was he going to go on like this? These thoughts kept playing in the back of his head while his eyes remained focused on the horizon.

Finally the boat came again in to view. There were 3 men on the boat this time. There also seemed to be some crates on board. The sea was getting rough and the men were having a tough time trying to negotiate their way back to coast.

He needed to confirm what was in the crates and therefore waited for the boat to land before he took aim. The boat hit ground and the 3 men got off. They beached the boat on the shore and were about to unload their cargo when one of the men fell down flat on his face much to the surprise of his mates. The other two were looking at each other when one of them found a small bindi type dot forming on the others forehead and suddenly that same man had fallen flat on his face too.

Aleem had been too surprised to react when suddenly he felt a searing pain in his neck. He fell on to the sand and grasped at the wound with both his hand and felt himself suffocating.

“You move and I will kill you” -came a voice from behind Aleem.

Aleem strained to make out the features. He could feel his vision blurring. With a determined effort to focus he took a good look at the man. He was shocked.

“Abdul!”

“I want to know where the consignment came from”- said the man.

“You deceiving son of a pig! How could you?”

“Let’s not get in to too many details. You are dying. You are going to die. If you cooperate I will make it easier for you. Else you may wish yourself dead and hope that it happens sooner rather than later.”

“I treated you like my brother. I had even spoken to Ummi about giving you Sana’s hand in marriage. You ate and slept at my home for so many months. And all the while you were double-crossing us.”

The man smiled and said- “The truth can be a bitch.”

 “Son of a pig! You will go to hell for this!”

“I’m guessing that the stuff came from the Norwegian ship- ‘The Queen’. From there it was on-loaded to a smaller vessel called- ‘The Katgi’. In fact my guess is that it was the Katgi that signaled you guys from sea.”

Aleem remained silent and defiant. With an effort he spat in the direction of the man. What came out was more blood than sputum.

He was sorry for Aleem. He had fooled him completely. Aleem was a nice man but in the wrong profession. The man took out his pistol and took aim. Aleem’s forehead was pierced in an instant. He could have waited and prolonged Aleem’s agony. But it was not in his nature to do so. He wasn’t evil. It was the only kind of mercy that he was capable of.

He climbed on board the little boat and opened the crates. It was quality A-1 heroin. He removed the packets one by one and made a huge fire to destroy them. Once that was done he dug a huge pit and dumped the 3 bodies in to it. He then covered it up. He had with him a few sticks of dynamite. He placed them on the boat attached to a timer. He then pushed the boat out to sea. In ten minutes the boat exploded comfortably away from coast. He’d gotten rid of all evidence.

The B-gang would be confounded. This was the biggest operation they’d been planning for over a year. They would have no way of finding out what exactly had happened to their consignment. There was no trace at all. They’d be going around in circles trying to figure exactly what had happened.

It had all gone perfectly according to plan. He was supposed to be happy and so he smiled. But it didn’t come from within. Suddenly he felt weary. He hated himself. Aleem was right- he did deserve to go to hell.

Maybe this was hell he thought to himself. The never ending equinox.

On Freedom of Expression

India is no longer a democracy. We are a hypocrisy. Our stated values and actions are poles apart.

This country was founded on the fundamental basis of value of human rights. Our founding fathers had the wisdom to write a constitution that would enshrine these human rights for everyone lucky enough to be born “Indian”. But, where are we today?

Yes you have the right to justice. But, we never told you how long it would take na. Yes you have the right to equality. Which means all of you will be treated equally badly. And most importantly, you have the freedom of expression- which means that you can say whatever you want as long as no one else hears it!

Government structures have evolved over centuries. Today, most societies in the world have come to the common conclusion that representative democracy is the best way forward. The system is not perfect. That’s why there are many checks & balances in place to make sure that the system doesn’t become stale and abused. There are two fundamental flaws though with democracy. One is that it takes time. To get even 50% of the people to form a common consensus is no simple task especially in larger countries. The bigger flaw with democracy, and one that we must be aware of at all times, is that though the government is elected at the behest of the majority, it doesn’t have to be that the majority is always right!

This is why we have fundamental rights. It is to protect the individual from the state. It clearly defines what you are entitled to. And come what may- these rights cannot be denied to you. The most fundamental of rights would be the right to freedom of expression. The very essence of being human is the ability to express one’s self. This expression could go against the prevailing norm of the day. And, this will be the acid test of how “civilized” we as a society are willing to be.

 It is difficult to clearly define the limits on the freedom of expression. Yes, we need limits. We can’t have guys going around town “expressing their rage” by shooting everyone in sight. Fundamentally, this expression should not involve the physical abuse of another person. What about the non-physical abuse? Now, this becomes a little tricky.

Say a woman walks past me naked. She is in no way physically involving me in her “expression”. How would I react? A part of me would be aroused. But, if I were with my family, then I would also be upset. It is indecent to appear nude in public places. It puts everyone else at a discomfort. When we are in the public sphere we must acknowledge that we are only tenants and not land-lords. We must behave in ways that will respect others’ rights. So which right of mine was the nude-lady infringing on? I would say it would be the “right to be left alone”. The right to be left alone/ the right to choice/ the right to privacy, becomes important in order to clearly define what can actually be designated as free expression. If a nude lady came out in a public space then that clearly abuses my rights and should be stopped. Maybe she’s protesting against AFSPA or for PETA. But, that doesn’t give her the right to invade my space. Now, if PETA wants to draw attention to its cause and says come and watch models nude and show your support- there’s nothing wrong with it. I’m being given a choice and the ladies are being allowed to express themselves.  

So, when it comes to freedom of expression, there must be a choice for the people. Now, with media, it is clear that we have this choice. If you feel Arnab Goswami is speaking rot today, you have the freedom to switch channels. If a movie touches a raw nerve then you have the choice to not go for it. It’s that simple.

But, all this is well when it comes to third persons. What if I’m involved directly? What if I felt someone was perpetrating lies about me and hurting my character and public image? Well, then in this case, the simple rule should be- “the truth must prevail”. If someone has said something rotten about me then they better substantiate it with proof, or, they must tender a public apology and remove the incendiary material forthwith. But, here again we must be careful with how this rule is applied. It should be the responsibility of the litigant to clearly define that the intent of the accused was libel/slander. This is important because if someone says- “Ajai doesn’t like cheese burgers” and if I go to court demanding proof of the same, then we are going in circles.

It is important to allow people to express themselves in the widest of ways possible. Only when one expresses an opinion can another grasp it. History is replete with examples of people who went against public opinion and had to make the ultimate sacrifice. Our modern societies need to ensure that individuals are given the space to express themselves without fear. It might be that the speaker is pointing an important fault in us. But, because of various reasons we are unable to see/ understand his/her views. With time and maturity society slowly begins to understand and appreciate the problem and starts to act on it. Public opinion takes a long time to shape. Democracy isn’t that we will always do things right, but, that eventually we will all find the right way. Freedom of expression is essential to ensure that it is so.

But, today in India, this freedom of expression is being abused by the political class. There have been many instances in the recent past where a twitter/FB update has sent a person to jail. Even the recent controversy over ‘Vishwaroopam’ was a clear political ploy. It becomes important for the courts and society to step up and stop this kind of abuse of our fundamental rights. This sets a dangerous precedent and one that could affect the way our society develops over the years.