Our Story Needs No Filter

by Sudeep Nagarkar

  I won’t let you down, breaking your faith and leaving you hurt. Love you too, Ruhi.

  ‘Krishna, when will the final list of candidates be declared?’ Raghu asked during an AISC meeting being conducted in one of the hostels. It was an informal meeting where only senior students showcasing leadership qualities had been called. Raghu loved the attention and respect he got at such meetings.

  ‘It should be out next week. The committee scrutinizes students who have filled out the forms and then decides the final names after filtering the rest,’ Krishna said as he stood leaning on the wall. ‘Comrades, we still have enough time on our hands and we should remember that our fight is for the poor and their rights. Let’s never forget this lest we get side-tracked during campaigning; we will preserve the MGU culture.’

  Everyone was tuned in to the discussion, suggesting ideas and better ways of implementation of those ideas. As the session progressed, Raghu started feeling a little uncomfortable with the points being raised. Everyone was just discussing the strategy to win rather than a strategy to build a better future.

  Sensing Raghu’s discomfort, Krishna piped in, ‘Raghu, I know it’s your first time and I see that you’re nervous. Listen, don’t think too much about it. Just remember the larger cause we are fighting for—the betterment of the poor, and we have to win these elections if we have to do something for them. With no power, we won’t be able to execute a single policy. And to win any battle, you need to have a plan of action. Understand? Here, have a drink to cool down.’ He flung a bottle of beer to him.

  ‘No, I’m good,’ Raghu replied, placing the bottle on the ground, still apprehensive about the whole thing.

  One after the other, different strategies were presented. Every detail revolved around how to emerge victorious—even if it was through unethical means. Krishna, however, had the best strategy of all.

  ‘As we all know, the first-year admission process has begun in full-swing. There are around 600 rooms in the hostel campus for around 1400 students out of which some will be new admissions. If you do the math, you will see no one gets a separate room and every room will have two to three people in it. All the members of our organization who get new admissions as room partners need to act as parasites—keep them as close to you as possible and win them over slowly so that they vote for us at the upcoming elections.’

  Raghu was shocked at Krishna’s modus operandi. Brainwashing the minds of innocent newcomers! Was I brainwashed similarly? Did Krishna win me over with lies as well? Was Jai actually right?

  The meeting broke up, but Raghu continued to be haunted by his doubts. He had promised Ruhi that he wasn’t going to do anything that would make her feel ashamed of him. Was he about to break his promise? He pushed these thoughts away and went to the college playground where Krishna was due to deliver a speech to a group of students.

  On the way, Raghu met Krishna. ‘Remember, you’re doing it for your own people. You have to win to secure their rights,’ Krishna mumbled to him.

  Once there, Krishna lost no time and immediately began his address to the gathered students. ‘Salaam, students of MGU. The time for elections is near and we need your support in our fight for the poor and the downtrodden. We have always been discriminated against and we won’t let that happen. If the poor are given anything, it is termed as subsidy but when the rich get anything, it is termed as incentives. We won’t let this happen . . . ’

  The speech went on for an hour and while a certain section of the audience cheered him on, there were some who booed him and posed some pertinent questions. One such question caught Krishna unaware.

  ‘If you want our vote, can you tell us one thing you have done for the betterment of the poor?’ It was Jai. He had come to listen to the speech along with Chris.

  For the first time, Krishna was at a loss for words. He quickly changed the topic and ended the speech within the next few minutes.

  Chris stood there smiling. ‘What a liar and a hypocrite!’ he whispered to Jai.

  ‘No surprises there,’ Jai replied. His eyes were transfixed on Raghu who in turn stood watching Krishna and then looked straight at him. Krishna had no answer to Jai’s question but his silence gave Raghu his much-needed answer.

  Election mania was on in full swing in the MGU campus. On one hand, the AISC and ABCP were leaving no stones unturned to ensure a win, while on the other, the SCI, a much smaller party than the other two, was giving them a tough fight with their impassioned speeches. The SCI’s presidential candidate, Akhilesh, had created quite a stir in the college campus with his demand for a 24/7 library for girls too. But Krishna did not feel threatened. He was confident that all it would take was one provocative speech and students would be lured to his side. His movement, Kraanti, continued and Raghu was now one of his favourites. He was promoted as assured and controlled tasks assigned to him. He even got an appreciation letter after successfully delivering literature books a couple of days after Krishna’s speech. Even the ABCP, which usually lay low during elections, now surfaced with a new face. With Jai, Chris, and Megha at the helm of affairs, the party was now seen as a strong contender, making the elections a game of equal power to watch keenly.

  An ABCP meeting was in progress in the campus.

  ‘Do you think your idea will yield the desired results? I personally feel it’s a little risky,’ an ABCP representative said to Jai. ‘Plus, we need to talk with the regional heads for funds. We’re running out of cash and can’t go on functioning like this.’

  ‘I understand but we need to change the way people think about us and the way we function. We need to overhaul our previous image of being an overly aggressive party and show the students that we truly care for their well-being. Fortunately, with Megha leading us, we have the women’s votes for sure,’ Jai said.

  ‘That’s not a given, Jai. Women can just as well vote for a male candidate,’ Megha snapped.

  ‘True, but we still stand a better chance of winning with you leading us.’

  ‘Fine, I’ll discuss with the national head about it,’ the ABCP representative finally said.

  Jai prepared a press release, assuming he would get a positive response from the national head of ABCP. And he was right—they gave a go-ahead to the idea he had put forth in the meeting. The gears had shifted—now there wasn’t much time and they had a lot of work to do.

  Jai told Chris to send the press release to all major media outlets so that it could be covered in the papers the following day. Although fairly confident, he and Megha were still a little nervous about the whole thing and whether their plan would unfold the way they planned.

  ‘The press release has been sent,’ Chris said pressing the send button on his laptop.

  ‘Great. So we still have a couple of days to plan the whole thing out. Also, after the media coverage, we will find out what’s on the minds of the students.’

  ‘We should only target the area surrounding MGU in the beginning,’ Megha suggested.

  ‘I agree, so let’s start from there,’ Jai added.

  The next day, and for a number of days thereafter, the ABCP was all over the news.

  ‘ABCP has decided to protest against the recent series of tax hikes by the Delhi state government. It will be a peaceful protest that will start and end at Jantar Mantar. The protest is being led by Megha, the party’s presidential candidate from MGU for the upcoming elections. They have assured that there would be no public loss . . .’

  Jai and Megha were drinking tea in the campus canteen and watching the news being played on TV. Every now and then, a student would come up and have a casual chat with them. The positive reaction from everyone was an encouraging sign.

  It was the day of the protest, and Jai, Chris and Megha were all set for action.

  Akhilesh and Krishna weren’t too fazed by the ABCP hogging all the limelight. They had conducted similar protests in the past and were certain that a protest like this would have little impact on people. It was around noon when t
he ABCP representatives who were assembled at Jantar Mantar gave a go-ahead for the march. Once considered a historical hotspot, Jantar Mantar was now the unofficial designated protest site in the capital.

  A huge section of the media had turned up to cover the event live. Jai, Chris and Megha were leading the protest from the front. A few minutes into the march and the sea of protesters divided itself into two groups. One headed by Megha made its way to liquor shops, while the other group led by Jai and Chris went in search of cigarette shops. As Megha stopped at a liquor shop with her followers in tow, the shopkeeper greeted her with a huge smile plastered on his face. ‘Good afternoon, ma’am,’ he wished.

  ‘We’ll buy everything. Pack up the whole thing,’ she instructed her team.

  ‘Everything?’

  ‘Yes, and send me the bill and I’ll have it settled. Don’t leave even a single bottle,’ Megha ordered.

  Journalists who had followed her into the shop looked at each other with quizzical expressions on their faces. The shopkeeper did as he was told and drew up a total bill of three lakhs! The media and the shopkeeper himself stood there, stunned. Jai and Chris had similarly instructed their team to buy all the cigarettes they could find in all shops nearby.

  Finally, the entire collection of bottles and cigarette packs were taken to an open ground and the heap was set on fire. Everyone, including the media, was left speechless. Once the fire died, Megha finally revealed her reasons behind the act. She wanted to make a statement about increasing taxes on commodities such as cigarettes and alcohol instead of hiking it for essential items. As promised, the ABCP had carried out the entire protest without troubling even a single person; they had broken through their old image of being an aggressive party with an exemplary peaceful march. And just as they had hoped, they won themselves a big fan following.

  Megha became a star overnight. Every news story and TV discussion on the subject had her on the screen—the mastermind behind the grand plan. Everyone sang her praises and even the higher authorities of ABCP appreciated her efforts. Jai, on the other hand, couldn’t be happier at being successful in executing the entire act peacefully. In other parts of the campus, the AISC and the SCI realized their mistake in underestimating the strength of the ABCP. Raghu was, however, happy that his friends’ party was doing so well and sent Jai a congratulatory message. Jai’s response was curt and sounded more like a taunt,

  Always standing by the right, bro! At the end of the day, only one person can emerge victorious. But it should be by the right means. Just a little sad that a few people don’t realize it. But I am sure they will before it’s too late.

  Over the next few days MGU turned into a campaigning fortress. Jai’s plan started taking root as Raghu’s doubts became stronger. He could clearly see the difference between Krishna’s and Jai’s approaches towards the election. Everyone now waited anxiously for the final candidate list that was going to be announced very soon.

  Fifteen

  20 June 2016

  ‘Did you read the newspaper? There’s an article on Megha and how she’s taking a stand against reservation,’ Ruhi said as she came running towards Raghu to tell him the good news. Raghu simply nodded with an expressionless face. They were sitting in an empty classroom after the lectures for the day had ended.

  Not paying heed to his unresponsiveness she continued, ‘I still remember the day she had announced her candidacy on Facebook and Akhilesh sent her a warning to remove the post. Today, she is kicking his ass. Woohoo, go Megha!’

  ‘Ruhi . . . please stop,’ Raghu replied with a heavy voice.

  ‘I so agree with her. I don’t know about betterment but all I know is this whole drama around caste and religion creates a tiff between the best of friends.’

  Raghu remained quiet. Ruhi noticed that he was not his usual self. ‘What’s wrong? Are you okay?’ She went closer to him.

  He was not. And he had no idea what he was doing. As the ABCP, with their righteous approach, kept getting popular, Raghu’s doubts over his decision to be with the AISC grew stronger. It seemed to him that the party was all talk, no show. He wanted to talk to Ruhi about it, but something stopped him. What if she took it the wrong way?

  ‘Are you okay?’ Ruhi asked again, shaking him out of his stupor.

  He looked deep into her eyes and before she could say anything, grabbed her close and kissed her passionately. Ruhi was taken by surprise. As they broke away from the kiss, Raghu whispered into her ears, ‘I so needed this . . . I love you. You don’t know what you mean to me.’ And before she could say anything, he began grazing her neck, planting small kisses everywhere.

  ‘Raghu . . .’ she sighed in ecstasy. ‘We can’t do this here. It’s a classroom . . .’

  But he cut her short as he devoured her mouth. Unable to hold back any longer, Ruhi threw her arms around his neck and responded to his caresses with equal fervour.

  A few minutes into their sudden make-out session, Ruhi finally broke free. ‘I have to leave. I have some urgent work to attend to.’

  Before Raghu could stop her, she hastily collected all her things and dashed out of the classroom. He lay there thinking about her, how good she was to him and how deeply he loved her. In her company, he forgot all about his problems. Her warmth gave him comfort, the comfort he craved for ever since the campaigning had picked up speed and he had found himself feeling lost and alone.

  It was Sunday evening and Jai was sitting at the roadside dhaba along with Chris and Megha. Typically for that time of the week, all the hot girls of MGU sauntered along the road in their prettiest outfits. ‘You know what my ultimate goal before graduation is?’ Chris asked while checking out the girls.

  ‘To lose your virginity?’ Jai replied cheekily.

  Megha laughed.

  ‘What the fuck do you mean? I am very respectful of girls. My ultimate goal is to have at least one serious relationship before I pass out. Otherwise, I have to be content with watching movies like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein.’

  ‘The possibility of the latter happening is more likely.’

  ‘Hey! I am talking about my emotions and here you are making fun of me!’

  ‘I’ll help you get laid after I win the elections and become president.’ Megha smirked.

  ‘Spoken like a true friend. Just send all the girls in your party to me and I’ll help solve all their problems.’ Chris winked back at her.

  Jai laughed and was about to place an order for a cup of tea when he saw a couple of bikes positioned at the far end of the road. He looked around and saw some guys come out of the adjoining building, get on those bikes and ride away. Although he had caught only a glimpse, Jai was sure they were the same guys who had once tried to harass Megha on the road.

  ‘There they are! I’ve been looking for them for far too long. This is it.’

  ‘Are you sure?’ Chris asked.

  ‘I’m certain of it! I can never forget those faces. Last time I missed nabbing them, but not today. Come with me, Chris,’ Jai commanded as he ran out and kick-started his bike. Megha tried to stop the two, saying it wasn’t worth it, but Jai had made up his mind and ignored her plea.

  ‘But we have to be careful,’ Chris advised as he took up a seat behind his friend.

  As they rode towards the direction of the bikes, Chris instructed, ‘Just keep riding and try to overtake them at some point. And when we cross paths, don’t look at them or else they’ll get suspicious.’

  A few minutes of chasing and Jai picked up speed around a U-turn. He eventually overtook them and stopped his bike abruptly in front of them. One of the two bikers sensed something was wrong and sped away but the other one couldn’t escape. Both Jai and Chris pounced on him and beat him black and blue. By the time people had gathered to see what the commotion was all about, it was over.

  Realizing that the elections were closing in and he and Chris were friends of the presidential candidate, Jai decided to spare the guy on the condition that he would
n’t repeat his act in the future.

  But just like he had thought, the ABCP was not at all pleased on hearing about the incident. Jai apologized to the team for his actions and promised not to do anything of this sort in the future—or at least till the elections were over. Megha, however, was bowled over by Jai—once again. That he had cared so much for her that he would take such a risk despite knowing it was against the ethics of the ABCP endeared him to her even more.

  21 June 2016

  It was the day the final list of candidates was going to be declared. All the candidates and their respective supporters had gathered near the main bulletin board at the college entrance where the list was going to be put up. Surprisingly, Krishna was nowhere to be seen. In fact, no one had seen him all morning and his supporters looked lost without him.

  ‘So, Ms Megha, how are you feeling right now?’ Jai teased her.

  ‘It’s scarier than exam results and I don’t think I’ve ever been more nervous in my life!’ Megha replied, rubbing her hands in nervousness.

  ‘You’re a winner for us, regardless of the list,’ Chris said reassuringly.

  Raghu and Ruhi were standing at some distance from them, but every now and then, Raghu cast a glance at his former friends. He could see they were as nervous as he was about the results. After weeks of campaigning, the final list of candidates was going to be announced soon.

  After an hour-long wait, the list was finally put up. A heavy crowd gathered around the board in eager anticipation. Jai and Megha pushed through the gathering and made their way to the front. Scanning through the list, they tried to locate Megha’s name on it. It was not there. Thinking they may have missed it somehow, their fingertips scanned the names once again. That’s when it hit them.