— By Suresh Iyer
— Reading Time – 12 min Approx
The elderly handicapped man was sitting across the street signal begging opposite a famous juice center near Haji Ali, Mumbai. No one knew for how many years he has been sitting over here. He seemed like an integral part of that picturesque area. The shopkeepers around called him Babaji. His wife often made rounds selling balloons while he stayed rooted over the place.
No one ever questioned them. Mumbai is such a city, it never questions you, it takes you in your arms. Years of sitting in the open made Babaji look much older than his age.
The fruit juice center was witness to many advocates, businessmen, college students and persons across all walks of life. Babaji noticed a bag which seemed to be abandoned in a corner. He moved towards it and sensed that maybe something valuable might be in it.
He looked around and carefully took the bag with him to a corner. He looked at the bag and opened it. It contained lots of documents and cards. Babaji carefully searched through the papers in the bag. It took quite a while to find out the address of its owner. He called at the given number with his old model keypad phone.
“Hello, speaking”
“Your bag is with me. You had left it over here.”
“……. O’ God! yes. Thanks, shall I come over to you.”
“Do not take the trouble. Where shall I come?”
“I will come near Nehru Planetarium which is just nearby. Will it be possible for you to come over there? I will be really thankful of you.”
Babaji again looked at the particulars in the bag. It did not contain anything valuable but it seemed that the documents were of some importance.
He picked his wife who was selling balloons nearby and slowly reached the said place and waited for the rightful owner.
In a few minutes, Sandeep arrived in his car and was taken aback to see an old beggar and a woman with his bag. Babaji looked around the car and Sandeep.
Sandeep smiled and took his bag from Babaji. He told Babaji that he was really grateful to him as the bag contained priceless documents, certificates, credit cards that were required for him to pursue higher education. He also took out one document and showed to Babaji to verify that it was indeed his.
Sandeep told Babaji to come in the car to his home. Babaji hesitated and replied gratefully that he was happy that the bag reached the right hands.
Sandeep thanked Babaji again and gave him two 500 Rupees notes
Babaji hesitated but took it after Sandeep insisted and left the place.
Meanwhile somewhere in the other part of South Mumbai; Nihal, a reputed builder was miffed with his agent Mihir of having lost the bag.
“How can you be so careless? Don’t you know that the bag contained such heavy cash? I cannot even go to the Police. I do not want my business transactions to come under the scanner.”
“I will try to find it out. I often go to that juice center and know the shopkeepers around; I will ask them discreetly.” said Mihir apologetically.
Nihal sent Mihir along with another trusted broker Yadav to find out about the bag.
When Babaji returned back relieved and happy for the 500 Rs. Notes he got for the good deed; he saw the shopkeepers around discussing about a missing bag.
He went near one of them, “Can I know what happened?”
One of the shopkeepers said, “Two people were around searching for a bag they had missed out. It seemed to be of some rich man and must have contained something valuable in it. Did you see anything like it? Don’t ever think of using anything which are not yours.”
“No, I don’t know anything. I am not such kind of person. I just happened to find one bag and returned it to its owner.” Babaji replied innocently.
The shopkeepers called out Mihir and his colleague and told them that one beggar had something to say about some missing bag.
Mihir pounced on Babaji, “Please return the bag if you had seen it.” He asked Yadav to search the beggar thoroughly.
Yadav searched around and Babaji thoroughly and forcefully despite Babaji’s denials and took out two 500 rupees notes.
“How come you have so much money.” Yadav enquired.
Babaji pleaded with both of them to leave him alone and narrated about the incident of the bag he found which he returned to its rightful owner.
They refused to believe in him and began asking Babaji to whom he had returned the bag.
Babaji was in tears.
“I do not even remember where he lives. I called him, he came over near the Planetarium nearby and took the bag with him. It only contained some papers.”
Yadav snatched his phone and dialled at his last called number. It came as switched off.
“These beggars are like this only. We should not trust them. They operate as a gang. This phone with him must also be a stolen one.” Mihir told Yadav. They took Babaji away along with them
Babaji’s wife was crying loudly and pleaded with them and the shopkeepers around that Babaji was innocent.
Next day, Babaji returned to his place. He was visibly beaten black and blue. His wife hugged him and started crying. The shopkeepers gathered and shooed them away.
“Please don’t come to this place again. Your presence will create trouble for all of us around.”
They both walked away quietly.
Back home, Sandeep’s wife Rita chided him as to what was the need to give such a big amount to a beggar. Sandeep took Rita inside and said,
“Look dear, it was God’s grace that I got back my bag from a nondescript beggar. What a miracle that I am in possession of a mixed-up bag with such a heavy cash amount. This is a windfall for us.”
Rita smiled at him, “Still, he was just a beggar. You need not have given so much money to such persons.”
“Thank God, no one is aware of this mix-up.” Sandeep winked as they both had a hearty laugh. He carefully took out the sim card from his switched off mobile phone and kept it aside to destroy it.
Sandeep’s bag had got mixed up with a similar bag at the juice centre. He did not even know about it till Rita noticed it as she opened the bag first. She was upset with Sandeep on first-hand about his forgetful nature but was thrilled to see huge wads of cash in the bag.
Sandeep and Rita were busy discussing what do with the money in the bag but did not expect their own bag to be returned from an unlikely source.
Sandeep thanked God for the unexpected gain and his mind started working overtime as to what to do with the Cash in the bag.
— By Suresh Iyer
