'We will spend as little as possible. We'll take enough theplas and khakras to
eat for the stay. Fred will arrange the stay. Think about it man, the Australian
cricket team,' Ish said.
I sat down and sighed. My financially clueless partners looked at me like kids
waiting for candy.
'All right. Who is the bloody travel agent, let me bargain with him,' I said.
'Yes, here we go,' Ish said as he dialled the agent's number. 'One week, I can't
leave the business anymore and everyday will be expensive there,' I said as I took
the phone. Omi disconnected the phone. 'Later, let's go to Nana Park now,' Omi
said.
★
Twice. They dug up the Ayodhya site twice.' Mama raised two lingers.
His voice echoed, more due to the poor quality of loudspeakers than the impact
of his words. Ish and I sat at one end of the first row. Omi stood on stage. He felt
important wearing a party badge, though he only had an errand-boy status. His
responsibilities included placing mineral water bottles for everyone sitting on the
stage.
Mama had done a good job of publicity. Two hundred people had shown up,
not bad for a neighbourhood gathering. The candidate, Hasmukh-ji, a veteran of
state politics and a longtime associate of Parekh-ji, sat centrestage. Mama was
enjoying his five minutes of mike fame before Hasmukh-ji's speech.
'As far back as 1978, ASI, the government's own entity, found temple evidence.
But the secular government hid it. Then in 1992, our dear kar sevaks were
pushed into breaking the structure. And they found something.'
Ish started cracking knuckles, punctuating Mama's words.
'They found a Hari-Vishnu inscription that established without doubt that
there was a temple in the past. But the secular party buries that news, too. The
focus shifts to the kar sevaks as vandals. But what about that evidence? Can a
Hindu in India demand justice or not? Where should we go? To America?'
Everyone applauded as Mama left the stage. Mama had candidate potential, I
thought.
Hasmukh-ji came to the mike. He requested everyone to close their eyes to say
the Gayatri Mantra, thrice. It always worked. The crowd became involved. They
liked Hasmukh-ji before he had spoken a word.
Omi stepped off the stage and came to me. 'Govind, Mama wants you to spy on
Ali's dad's rally. And Ish, can you come backstage, the snacks need to be
distributed.'
'But why?' I was bewildered.
'You promised to help Mama, remember?' Omi said, his silk badge fluttering in
the breeze.
I walked over to the other end of the park, to the other rally, The decorations
here were less saffron and more white.
'Gujarat is a place of intelligent people,' Ali's dad was speaking, 'who know
politics and religion are separate.'
I took a seat in the last row and eyeballed the crowd. Unlike Mama's hundred
per cent Hindu, this was more of a mixed bunch, If the secular party was so pro-
Muslim as Mama suggested, why were so many Hindus sitting here?
avery
(avery)
#1