NEWSPAPERS: Warning or threats

I felt as if a ‘time bomb’ was ticking in my handbag. The moment anyone came to know about it, I was in a soup. Yes! That day I was on my way home from a bank and the ‘time bomb’ what I thought was a huge five figure amount I was carrying with me.

After a sabbatical and paying off the dues, I decided to close down my salary account with a reputed bank. After going to the bank and completing all the formalities, I learnt that the final amount in my account will be handed over in cash right then rather than transferring it to another bank account. A chill went through my spine hearing this… a cloud of fear surrounded me. My mind quickly went in a flashback mode where the headlines of that day’s newspaper screamed: ‘Ahmedabad: Gujarat’s underworld HQ’. Yet another incident I recalled was an article about a businessman being robbed from a bank near Mithakali. I tried to calm down and caught hold on myself. After counting the amount from the teller, I carefully put it in my handbag; zipped and checked it twice. Suddenly I felt as if I was automatically granted four eyes – two in front and two at the back that quickly scanned people’s eyes on me.

Before opening the main door, I walk passed the security guard. I looked at him with suspicion. ‘Was he by any chance a ‘khabari’ or an informer of some gang?’ Regaining my posture, I moved out of the bank hurriedly and started walking towards my parked scooty. A million thoughts crossed my mind within those few seconds. My imagination went far away and suddenly felt as if my handbag had turned transparent and things inside can be easily scanned. I decided to grab it tightly… but that would have caught attention and sent ‘not-so-favourable’ signals; so thought of acting otherwise and be cool.

Suddenly I recalled how a family friend witnessed an incident of chain snatching where the victim had no-one to help. I felt as if all the heads turned to me and all the roaming eyes on the roads stopped on me. In short, ‘I am being WATCHED’ said some voice inside me. Continuous hammering of reports related to robberies and thefts had psychologically ruined me in that situation.

Incidents of thefts, robbery, chain snatching, etc are increasing at an alarming rate which we come to know through daily newspapers. The job of a newspaper is only to report an incident – but what are we doing? Are such reports a warning for us to be more cautious or they act as a threat and hinder our healthy thoughts, somehow trying to say that we might fall a victim to it any moment. Or lastly, is it a message to the gangs in the making that such incidents are never paid any heed to; none of the robbers on a stealing spree are being generally caught and so what they wish would be easily granted to them???

After reaching my vehicle, I quickly opened the dickey and dumped my handbag. I drove back home cautiously, looking at the rear view mirror time and again. Only after locking the home door from inside, I heaved a sigh of relief.