Haunted Lies part 1

INCIDENT 1

The coolie

Date: 13 May 1992                     

Place: Daman Station                                                                        Time: 11:00 pm

Dear diary,

Indian traditions perhaps include late running trains since Robert Clive`s era.  As usual, In a late running train Within the few passengers who were left, I was most frustrated, for I had got posting in this monotonous place for research on Paleozoic era skeletons which were discovered recently from the beach side. As I got down the train, I started searching for station master`s cabin, so that I can at least telephone or tar a message to my family, on the plat form there was a streaming and absolute silence, not even a single tea seller, do you believe? How to search a rickshaw then? Dense fog with faint burning smell in air made vision very difficult.  With strong voice I shouted “Coolie”. No response.  I tried again, this time louder “Coolie…Coolie”. And finally a red kurta and white dhoti figure emerged from the fog.  He was pretty old but looked habituated to the strain; more over what I had was just two suitcases.  He came near me and said-“Jee sahib”.  I spoke in stern voice-“saman bahar tak le chalo”.   He nodded his head in obedience and picked up the suitcases.  Slowly walking we came out of the station, not a single rickshaw.  I asked him about station master throughout the way but he did not speak much.  In the cold and dense fog his metal shoulder band glittered faintly, it read ‘222’.  The coolie put both those suitcases in rickshaw without its driver and wiped his face with the gamcha around his neck.  I took out my wallet and asked-“kitna hua?”  He just smiled and said-“ Bees rupaiya sahib”, I paid him twenty rupees and then he disappeared in the dense fog.  Nothing to feel unusual but it was a unique thing…coolie in railway station and no argument!!!  After 10 minutes an ambassador passed the way, the man stopped on seeing me. He offered lift and I accepted it. My destination was blue resort which was 20 minutes from the station. What happened was that my eyes fell on the newspaper lying on the deck of the car, the gentleman was kind enough to offer me and I just glanced through it… the third column on extreme right read-

‘Mysterious death of Coolie: Today a Coolie identified as Asmal, was mysteriously found dead near the Daman station.  He worked under the tag 222……Police suspected death due to stress on body’

And what followed was a photo of the coolie….My God……he was the same then….but how??????  Mind is full of tremor….never experienced such thing.

Anand