Insecure times breed mistrust
TANUSHREE PODDER
THIS HAPPENED when I travelled recently from Bhopal to Agra. The three tier air-conditioned coach was full. Just as the train started, there was a loud discussion in the adjoining area. A suitcase and a voluminous airbag had been found under the seat but no owner could be located.
A desperate search all over the compartment failed to yield any claimant. The toilets were checked and the passengers in the adjoining interconnected air-conditioned compartment were also asked but the owner of the baggage was not traceable. Tension rose as the passengers speculated about the baggage. `It could be dangerous,' opined an old gentleman.
With memories of the recent Samjhauta Express blasts it was natural that everyone was suspicious about the unclaimed baggage. The coach attendant was summoned and he contacted the Railway Protection Force jawan travelling in the adjoining AC compartment. Discussions whether the baggage should be tossed out or retained took on a serious note with each passenger nursing his opinion.
"We should throw out the bags without any delay," said the vociferous gentleman seated across me while another suggested that we wait till the next station. "The passenger might have got into another compartment, we should wait," he said.
The recent explosions on other trains were on everyone's mind. Most of us were unwilling to take a chance with our lives.
The RPF jawan threw the ball in our court: "I will do whatever you want. If you want the baggage to be thrown out, I'll do that."
Then someone remembered a gentleman who had been allocated the upper berth. He had said something about getting his daughter. Definitely, he was the owner of the baggage. The airbag was opened and a passport discovered.
"If the passport is there, it has to be a genuine person," said a passenger.
"That's exactly it, if someone wants to mislead identification, he will leave a passport. It adds mystery to the entire affair and everyone knows that fake passports can be acquired," said another.
Finally, a decision to wait till the next station was taken. Came the next halt and a perfectly respectable gentleman holding the hand of his six-year-old daughter entered the compartment putting all doubts to rest. He looked harassed and out of breath.
"I was fetching some biscuits for my daughter when the train started. We had to rush into the first available compartment. I am sorry for all the tension caused by my baggage," he apologised when the passengers jumped at him for his irresponsible behaviour.
It could have happened to any of us.
Many of the passengers who had advocated throwing out the baggage looked contrite while those who had advised patience smirked. I was one of those guilty of having pictured the worst scenario in my mind.
The situation was a replay of what had happened during another journey 15 years ago but at that time no passenger had suggested throwing out the baggage. Instead, they had rallied around and waited patiently for the missing passenger to come on board. I mused at the changing attitude in people. Locked in the grip of violence we seem to be caught in the process of losing touch with human values. Distrust and suspicion come automatically to most of us.
There are enough reasons to harbour distrust and concerns while travelling but an equal number of reasons to continue having faith in fellow human beings, I guess.
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