September 9, 2004

Recently, I was in a ‘slight’ road accident. I call it slight because it did not involve anyone getting hurt, nor did it cause too much damage to the car. But it was enough to scare the daylights out of me, and made me wary of taking turns on the roads for some time.

The incident took place while I was trying to avoid another car which was approaching from the other side of the road, and miscalculating I hit an electric pole on the side. There was an extremely loud bang and the pole while swaying, started spewing sparks which fell on my car. There was a thick steel wire attached to the pole which somehow got entangled with the mudguard of the car and would not allow it to budge.

So here I was with sparks flying and rooted to the place firmly. Headlines flashed past my mind’s eye, ‘Death by electrocution’, or worse still, ‘The pole did it’. What a way to die! But mercifully the sparks stopped and the realization that apart from the car, everything was all right, brought a relief that comes only after threatening situations. That a large portion of the area lost its electricity is another story.

Summing up the situation which one does after such a mishap, I discovered that apart from a bruised ego.

This incident had affected my self-confidence. I now make turns, especially in narrow lanes, with a dreadful feeling that I might hit something. This I am told is very natural and my nerves will take a little time to become normal.

The alarming thing about this little incident was the realization that it is only when you go through something yourself that you really understand what others must have felt in similar situations. Perhaps it has something to do with our innate selfishness. What does a person feel when a car is snatched at gunpoint, or someone is kidnapped, or when dacoits enter your home, which is a haven from life’s daily little crises? All life-threatening situations indeed.

How do those people cope with life after going through the trauma of seeing weapons shoved in their faces: of unwanted strangers pushing and touching them, taking away their belongings that they spent their whole life collecting?

One can imagine the helplessness, the outrage, the fear and the terrible moments in which young daughters, wives and sisters are at the mercy of these wretched humans who have the audacity to break in. And what happens to those people who have their cars taken at gunpoint again and again, and families who have dacoits robbing them more than once? The violation of privacy, the hopelessness and resentment tend to go away gradually, but is there any guarantee that this violation will not take place again?

What do these usually peaceful citizens do? Some leave the country, others get ready to take the law into their own hands by taking care of the situation and end up killing the next person who breaks into their house or get killed instead. How do children cope with these situations? Do they forget after a while — or do they take these scars into adulthood and become timid or aggressive and mean for life?

We know that cases hardly ever get solved and breaking into houses continues at the same pace, which makes it amply clear that there is something very wrong. You wonder who is responsible for the situation and who to turn to for justice and unfortunately conclude that there’s nobody really. A bleak picture indeed!

I now find myself looking over my shoulder to see if there is a potential car or purse snatcher standing nearby, while getting out of the car.

I pray to God that I am not the next victim and that I am spared these traumas, be they accidents, life-threatening situations or violation of the sanctity of my home. I also pray fervently that the system corrects itself before reaching a breaking point — the point of no return. Chaos begets chaos, and peace, harmony and tranquillity become ideals of the past. Will tomorrow ever be another day for our nation?

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