CHAPTER C
A TALE FROM THREE CITIES
4)A GIRL WITH A PEACOCK TATTOO
The sky was a billion pure eyes of light glowing like a summer peach and sun a pure gold dome lit up in the horizon, dawn sent shimmering rays over the placid ocean bestowing a golden path from the shore to the horizon.
Constable Krishnamoorthy was enjoying the lightening sky that is swallowing it's brilliant freckles too quickly as he was in regular patrolling across the shore.
Suddenly he noticed something lying cold and floating off the shore. Initially he thought it was the remains of wastes that citizen of calicut city leave behind every morning, but up on approaching closer he noticed a corpse.
A young girl almost naked with signs of enchainment and rigorous torture was lying prone over the sand with sea water drooling from her angle of mouth. Cop was shocked, he ran off shore to nearest shed and ripped of the banner from its roof to cover her. He examined her without soiling the evidence, meanwhile he noted she was trying to breathe.
He soon passed message to his senior who was patrolling besides the coast in his jeep. They both took her to the medical college, was admitted in ICU not knowing her identity. Head constable jeevan who came to examine her under doctor's guidance noticed no identification marks on her except a tattoo on the chest.
A peacock between her breasts with its tail wide open till both collar bones gave her the nickname 'The girl with the peacock tattoo'. Despite of repeated advertisements on newspapers and routine investigations they couldn't determine her identity for almost a week.
A retired matron from medical college accidentally noticed her lying in ICU bed and recognised her as an old graduate from the same college, though further clarification were necessary. Jeevan uncle carried out detailed enquiry among the house surgeons at the medical college and discovered she was Dr Aarthi verma.
She had completed her course in the year 1992 and did house surgency in the same hospital for another one year. There after nobody remembered where she had vanished, including her colleagues.
Her parents were intimidated soon from the records available with the faculty. Since she remained unresponsive for over a month, things happened to her remained suspicious. There were evidences of repeated forced sexual intercourse and physical torture including head injury.
So case was initiated under sections 307, 320 and 370 of indian penal code, initiated in town station. The curiousity increased when her own parents claimed she was doing rural tenure in sultan batheri following her internship, while the staff at the primary health centre hardly recognised her.
"She was a studious girl through out her college days and of course a proficient doctor during her OP days" Her colleagues comemorated her during police enquiry.
But everyone memorizes her charming company, untill she fell in love with a young military doctor who was then posted at ARO (Army Recruiting Office).
"She was a borne leader for all of us. She had the skills close to a clinical tutor during our intern days. She aspired to grab a post graduation in surgery and further become a cardio thoracic surgeon. But everything changed once they started dating." Her colleagues recollected their days together in college.
There after whole investigation went behind that guy, her ex boyfriend who had fled to a north eastern state by then. Major Yousuf Shah, a graduate from armed forces medical college of 1990 batch was kept as prime suspect and military authorities were intimidated.
They had met during some recruitment rally and fell in love with each other. They started roaming around more often and she gradually detatched from her routine friends.
Following house surgency they had started living together in a flat in the heart of the city which she intentionall hid from her parents.
She had attempted for service selection board once neglecting high ranks she got in post graduate examination. Her best friend remember herself quarrelling with her when she adviced her to take up the 'medicine' seat at government medical College theni.
"She hid everything from her parents. She had enough marks to fetch a medicine pg seat in theni, but gave that up on his influence and did resident ship in a health centre at kondotty. They thought she was in bathery and used to come home in weekends but in real they were living together." She said.
"She wanted to join armed forces so that they could be together forever. But failed on her first attempt. There were some misunderstanding between them as she lost her service selection on first attempt, being pregnant." Remember her colleague at health centre Radhika ma'am.
"She aborted that child and they parted their ways for a while. The indifferences didn't last for long, he came back to her and started supporting each other."
There were evidences left on her flat regarding their past cohabitation and frequent tours to goa, bangalore and Pondicherry. The suspicious fact was that he had got posted out from ARO just a week prior to the one she was last seen.
The case was only around that young doctor untill he arrived his prior unit and accepted to converse directly with the police. He had a different story to tell, which paved to new break throughs in the case.
"Sir, I accept all those which you have discovered so far by your investigation. We were in love, were in close relationship which we hid from both our parents but we wanted to proceed beyond that. I landed at Calicut on new year eve to convince her to talk with her parents. I had disclosed to my parents about her, they protested initially but couldn't refuse my dream for long.
She was afraid as she belonged to a high class hindu family, myself being a muslim. We planned a weekend getaway to mahi and returned to calicut saturday afternoon. Though I was ready to meet her parents to talk about our future, she refused.
She requested for a month's time to prime them, so we decided to enjoy the weekend at the citadel. I booked a room at hotel Chandler for both of us and we're together for two more days as I had a flight to catch on monday morning.
As usual I got ready before dawn so that I could leave her at her flat and catch my flight. But she was too tired, reluctant to get up from bed. She asked me to leave promising she need to sleep for another hour and would leave for her home there after. Since booking was till monday afternoon I nodded to her request and fetched the flight on time. I tried calling her home as soon as I landed at delhi, but she wasn't picking her phone.
Since it was routine she hardly fetches my call at home fearing her parents, I left with no doubts. I travelled back to Guwahati to report back to my unit. I tried to call her at her residence and workplace thereafter but noone responded.
Finally when I came to know about it, I was shocked and was running back to the city on emergency leave." He inspired as if he was chocking inside, explaining the events to jeevan uncle.
"I trust you but I have few questions to shoot, May I?"
"Yes sir, even I want to know who did this harm to her."
"Donot act so empathetic, it won't suit your chocolate boy face. Tell me when did she started using cannabis with you?"
"Sir!! how come??" He stumbled all in a sudden and lost his voice for some moments.
"Because her body has been over dosed with tetrahydro cannabinol and opioids, the medical records have been stating the same.
Now explain your role in making her a drug addict." Jeevan uncle rose in full form but his opponent wasn't giving up.
"I used to take few puffs with friends just for entertainment. But she was never dependant to any such drugs, instead she used to deviate me from my addictions. I had quit smoking these shit because of her compulsion.
Something has gone wrong around her after I had left that day." His teary eyes looked genuine but jeevan uncle had a suspicion on him untill he landed in to the hotel they stayed that night.
Shah had already mentioned about her affection towards ice cream, going behind her orders that morning he landed up in the ice cream parlour downstairs. She had consumed an ice-cream over there and fell unconscious due to over dosing. She was taken in to hell, tortured over nights and day among few more helpless women. When her profile was revealed to be high flying one, they left her to die in the waves of arabian sea.
The samples collected secretly from the parlour revealed high content of addictive substances. But immediate action was prevented by the political pressure from the MLA 's office. The hotel and the ice cream parlor was run by a business tykoon from the town , Shaukat ali.
He owned the most credible travel agency in the state which used to recruit nurses to gulf countries. He too was the nephew of then MLA and a close friend to circle inspector of the town. So the suspicions could not lead them to further enquiries or arrests.
Meanwhile jeevan uncle was actively involved in collection of evidences against them.
Two more deaths of higher secondary students were reported at nadakkavu police station and the scenario changed. A girl who worked in their agency went missing and that was the opportunity jeevan uncle have been waiting for long.
A police team lead by Sub inspector janardhan of town police station raided the ice cream parlour overnight. They caught the ex MLA from a room of the same hotel with a local girl called 'Rajina' and the whole attention went off to it. They saved around sixteen teenage girls from their after dark brothel and the hotel was shut down forever.
Media switched from the title of 'the girl with peacock tattoo' to the notorious 'Ice cream parlour case'. The city was burning for few years over the same, many lives sacrificed, but no miracles happened as 'the lady with the balance' remained blind folded.
The girl was ambitious, she was a hard working girl and had her own dreams. Everything went futile just because she chose a guy not worthy for her and lied to her parents. One wrong desicion in life can turn things upside down especially in a world full of filthy wolves.
They labelled her as a lier, a girl who went in the wrong paths, despite every one knew she was being trapped in to brothel. She was declared a non worthy witness before law just because she pointed out the right criminals.
She was denied justice for the crimes committed against her, for the brutality she had to face inside a sex scandal for few days.
The girl was unconscious for months, when she regained back her normality her parents were gone, her long boyfriend was no longer single and she was left to suffer for none of her faults.
This isn't just the story about 'a girl with the peacock tattoo', she represents the face of helpless women who fall in to traps and are mutilated by this society.
"When will this country learn to respect women??"
***************************************
"We met at the medical college as chronic patients,shared a common disorder and were unable to percieve our ambitions. So we decided to be there for each other." Lakshmi introduced her best friend before us that evening.
She stepped slowly from that small room, let the light touch her face as if it were the sun was to appreciate her presence. Despite her frail appearance and gentle expression, we knew what truly lied behind that facet of wrinkles. She was burning with fury like the mother goddess who would one day burn all those demons alive.
We stood up in respect knowing she was once a reputed doctor. Tulsi carried her slowly forward and made her sit on a chair besides us.
Me and suhra introduced ourselves before her and from then we had grown more than friends.
"Finally what happened to the case around the ice cream parlour brothel. Had the cuprits got punished? " I asked anticipating a favorable climax to her long story.
"Nothing happens here in favour of justice. I myself have seen the witnesses of the case walking barefoot to the court room for initial trials, in a scooter for the next level and in bigger vehicles there after. Each and every witness benifitted for their long living, neither the victim nor the officers who stood for justice lived happily ever after." Madhu replied exposing his frustration.
"Madhu, be calm and composed. There is ultimately a verdict before almighty which noone can influence or manipulate. Whosoever does the wrong will be repaid for their deeds and there is no favoritism." Lakshmi seemed composed about all those mishappenings and obstinate about truth and justice.
"Justice shall be served only to those who have money to spend, heads to call and power to manipulate." Madhu wasn't ready to accept anything so lightly neither us.
"An iron won't grow linear unless a mason work hard to mend it. Same we have to do, manipulate System through a revolution, is quintessential." He exclaimed.
He sounded prudent, determined and ebullient erstwhile, though small in age for all his ambitions.
"Yes bro! You're right. Almighty would punish those criminals is an ages old concept. Soon we are all going to become Godly humans, its kaliyug. We might as well do something to bring equality in justice." Charming young flame of Kabir supported his brother.
"You may be right. But an eye for an eye is not the solution. If you wanna bring a change you will have to become one, not as an individual but as friends who work towards common goal. Just think again and again, there were few prophets who could bring in change, but they were all victimized by their own herd ,sacrifised in the name of renaissance and few were made Gods.
But the herd never reformed according to their guardians, that's why these religions became outdated form of reforms.
Vedas told a human might is the greatest 'God' and every human the same, and we fight each other on colour and creed.
Jesus told churches aren't business enterprises and they built the biggest establishment in his name.
Mohammed preached about the safety of women in deserts where robbers existed and we utilise the same in tropical rain forests.
Buddha preached about a single God and now he with a few successors are among the clan of Gods.
If independence struggle had happened more than 500 years ago even Mahatma Gandhi would have become one.So to bring change the individual sacrifices are not enough. A well planned movement with men and women of parallel notion is necessary. If you are ready to sacrifi1ce your lives for such a perception you might have a chance. Otherwise these are all fading flames one day you would become a part of it on your own." Lakshmi sounded sensible to me as if she has been on a notion on her own. Her words sounded loud loud enough to shake a few of our minds along with the shabby walls of Teresa home.
"Yes, Lax. We absolutely agree with your words but what should we do if we want to bring the change?" It was Suhra who got inspired if her this time.
"Educate yourself well and achieve those powerful positions yourselves. Once you're in their shoes, lets see if you could still hold your flames so close to your own hearts." Lakshmi smiled igniting more amber within our furnaces.
That night we both discussed about them. They were the living examples before us who overcame all their hardships upon sheer determination.
"I got goose bumps listening to their story." Suhra whispered in my ears.
"Whose?"
"Aarthi and lakshmi, how magnanimously they survived together, though the whole world stood up with odds."
"Absolutely their lives are inspiring, but you think about the society in which women aren't safe. Don't you see the irony, the civilization who sees women as goddesses is the same where we are least safe?"
"Yes, all our holy books discuss about purity of women. Still her virginity is being haunted like a holy grail. When will these things change forever?" Suhra looked upset about the conditions around but I knew why I was getting exposed to all these.
"It is not gonna change overnight. We have to bring up what we long for." I mumbled.
"I think he has started influencing you more than ever before. Keep it up." She gave a filthy smile in that stray light of night lamp.
"Yes, I agree that but that doesn't imply we are meant for each other. Even I have got the conflagration since long to fight against odds. I think I am meant for it." I replied.
Speaking through the day as well as the emotions it poured in to us we gradually fell in to deep sleep, meanwhile the world was conspiring behind us to codify our wisdom.
********To be continued **********