PART 11
After Daadi ditched me and went to Mumbai, I was sure that her driver was no one but Tezinder.
I had not allowed the pilot to fly, thinking that it might force Daadi to take me with her, but I was not shocked to learn that Lucky Singh Ahaluwalia knew how to fly a helicopter; who was I fooling? Of course Tezinder is a licensed pilot.
I thought about immediately following them, but I knew Daadi would be waiting for me there, with all her Astra and Shastra. So I decided to take it coolly.
Anyway I have to go to meet Mr. Bernard, he has come to India to see the Taj Mahal and was staying at ABC hotel.
My meeting with Mr. Bernard was successful; he was ready to invest with us in a pan city project at Agra. While returning I thought about moving around the city to get the feel of the place where I would be trying to get the next project. If we get this government project it will help us in expanding our realm.
This city needs a major haul, traffic was very badly managed or say mismanaged. The whole MG Road needs to be re-evaluated; the city needs many fly overs. And alternate routes. But first and for most it needs properly managed junctions.
I was standing at the traffic signal at Dhaulpur house, watching the pedestrians, one person seemed familiar, I rubbed my eyes, but he was there trying to cross the road.
"Rammanna! I shouted with all my might, if he was not Rammanna, no harm was done, but if he was I need to talk to him, his father died in that fire.
I still remember that he took leave for 2 days saying that he wanted to visit his father who worked at Badi Haveli, I had thought he too was in the fire but along with the twins his dead body was never found, no one searched for him, as he was just a guest there. I had sometimes wondered where he was.
"RAMMANNA I tried again.
He looked in my direction and ran towards me. He was delighted to see me.
He eagerly said, "Bade Saab aap yahan" (sir, you here)
"Rammanna, yahan Agra mein kya kar rahen ho? Aur tum achanak kahan gayab ho gaye" (what are you doing here at Agra? And where did you suddenly disappear?)
Before he could reply the traffic started moving, "Rammanna aao Gaadi main baitho" (come sit in the car)
Rammanna sat in the car, "Bade saab aapko dhyaan hoga ki mere pitaji Badi Haveli mein kaam karte the" (you must be remembering that my father worked at the badi haveli)
"haan" (yes)
"wo jis din aag lagi thi mein wahin tha" (the day it caught fire I was there)
"hmm"
"wo Chote Malik, jinhone mujhe aapke yahan lagwaya tha us din kuch gondo ne unhe bahut mara aur kisi tarah se unhe bachata hua mein yahan laya" (you remember sir, the person who referred me to your employment, that day few goons almost killed him and I somehow managed to bring him to Agra with me)
"tumhara matlab Tezender tumhare saath hain" (you mean to say that Tezender is with you)
"Ji"
I suddenly applied the brake of the car, I was shocked on hearing the news.
The sudden halting of the car caused a chaos, the car was hit by the bus coming from behind, but thanks to the jam, the speed of the vehicles was so slow that no damage was done, still heated words were exchanged.
I moved ahead, taking an U turn, and halted the car in front was a hotel.
"Tum Kya bol Rahe ho? (what are you saying?), I was confused if Tezender was with Rammanna then who was Lucky.
"Sach bol raha hoan Bade Saaab (I am telling the truth)
"Lekin wo to us aag mein jal gaye, sab khatam ho gaya (but everyone was burnt in that fire)
He slowly narrated the story about the goons, yes Tezender was on his way to meet me, and I was waiting for him.
He was telling me, that he was afraid that someone will recognize Tezender so he dragged him towards the highway and asked lift from the truck drivers telling that some goons have looted this man and he needed to treated, one of the truck drivers helped him and dropped him at Bulandsahar, at the government hospital they said that the inuries were deep and he needed to be taken to some big city, Rammanna pretended that they belonged to Agra, as it was far away and he knew few people there, and begged them to help him take the injured to Agra.
The hospital people took pity on him and sent him by an ambulance which was returning to Agra. Here he admitted him at SN Medical college under the name of his dead brother.
At present Tezender was recovering and they lived in a small Basti at Dayalbagh.
"Rammanna, you should have informed me I said feeling cheated.
"I called you Bade Saab, I called you from Bulandsahar he said looking perplexed
"When I never remembered getting his call
"When we reached Bulandsahar, I called at the Mansion, Sasha Madam answered the call, she said you were not in Delhi, I also called at the office there also Adi sir said the same thing that you have not yet returned. When I asked when you will be back, he said he was not sure, maybe after 15 days
Yes I was in Ghaziabad and this poor man did not have my mobile nimber
"I did not know what to do, I could not tell them about Chote Malik, I did not know who I can trust he continued
"It's true Rammanna, I was in Ghaziabad and your Chote Malik was on his way to meet me. Can you take me to meet him?
"Yes Bade Saab Definitely
I reached the place Tezi was residing at present, it was a small basti, I have to leave my car on the main road, I was happy that the place was at least clean. Rammanna guided me towards a small one storey house. I was amazed by the twists of life, the Badi Haveli could house 20 such small basti's
I knocked the door
"Bade Saab, don't knock Chote Malik would startle
I gave him a confused look
"I never knock, and no one comes here
"Why?
"I have told everyone that he is my old uncle and is recovering from leprosy
"What Leprosy?
"Yes, Chote Malik said this will keep people from trying to snoop in
He slowly opened the door
"Chote Malik
I saw a person lying on the cot, covered with a heavy blanket
"Malik, dekhiye kaun mila mujhe (sir, look who I met)
The person slowly moved and said, "Kaun mila, Rammanna? (who did you meet?)
"Bade Saab!
He immediately threw away the blanket, "Tumhare Bade Saab?(your boss)
I could not imagine that I was seeing Tezender, he looked like his ghost.
"Yes, it's me Tezi, it's me I said
SHRUTI
Ganesh Kartikeya
Current Affairs
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