My father is an extortionist’s agent

IT MUST be around half-past-five on a fine morning. My sleek mobile turned fiend, and woke me up. I had just slept for one hour. I was so tired the day before because of unscheduled heavy work in my office. “Hell, who is calling me at this time” – my anger bursted out on the cell phone.

It was my friend Athouba, who works for a TV channel, started talking in a horrified manner rather than a normal conversation.

“There is a serious problem I have to discuss with you.”

When I asked him what’s it. He said, “My father has become an extortionist’s agent.”

“What… how!” I asked.

“My father collects money from his staff and delivers the sum to those people. Sometimes he has to travel to very distant places.”

“Do you know if he didn’t reach there on time, what would be the consequence,” he continued without waiting.

The episode was, as we normally call, a tiny illustration in thousands of such cases in this small state – Manipur, where I was born and grew up. The crimes in this state are not phenomenon yet they have been rooted in the soil for long.

There are thousands of untold stories here. There are mothers who day and night wait for their “lost” sons. There are families who have been continuously tortured, either by state forces or non-state actors. Remember Sanamacha? – A young boy who was picked up by the security forces on the eve of his board examination. He has never returned home till today. His blood-stain clothes were found the next day. His ailing parents are still hoping to see his face one-day. Who is to blame – is still an unanswered question.

The terror and insurgency activities in the country always make headlines in every newspaper and TV channel, but media never tries to find why and where the root cause started. Why Islamic terrorism now, why not earlier. Why Hindu fundamentalism is on the rise everyday. Why Christians are being attacked regularly and why Dalits are been frequently tortured. Terrorism doesn’t occur. It is being created by you, by me.

Ask anyone when we celebrate – Gandhi Jayanti. Of course, everybody would answer it is on Oct 2, the day Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation was born, but why it is important would be a bit difficult to respond because the day is dedicated for Gandhi’s non-violence and tolerance. The assertion is, we remember Gandhi and non-violence only on Oct 2, not on other days. We do not follow his teachings, his path. The country has been fragmenting by these so-called nationalists and shadowy jargons.

“So what’ll you do,” I asked.

“I want to write a story about this. I think it’s enough. They have been harassing my father every time and then… we can’t bear their demands anymore.” “What to write then?” “My father’s an extortionist agent,” he bluntly replied. “Oh my god, you want to be killed? Anyway go ahead, but don’t mention your father name and place,” I suggested. He seemed to have felt a little relieved, but I knew he was not satisfied with my answer.

“Shall I hang up; I think I should sleep a little more.” “Ok, thank you.”