Inverted Thoughts

Where the upside down makes perfect sense

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  • Maya (Part – 3)

    “You are talking about Suraj Mishra? The son of the Mahayug Party MP?” Shyam asked, his expression showing little surprise. 

    It is indeed him. The president, his face blazing with rage, remarked, “I have no words to describe the type of person he is.” 

    Maya had a lot of courage. Maya wanted her story to be heard so that no other girl would experience what she did. In most cases, women are afraid to speak out against sexual harassment for fear of being judged by society. 

    It’s not their mistake that these ladies don’t step out and speak up on these situations. We made a mistake by failing to provide them with the assistance they required during difficult times and by beginning to pass judgment on them. We frequently make remarks that cause people more pain than the attack, like

    Making a remark on the dress!

    What is she even doing there at that time?

    She is a girl/woman and she needs to be more careful! 

    They even begin mistreating the girl’s parents, but Maya was a courageous and resilient young lady!

    Despite intense pressure from all sides, Maya and the rest of us filed a lawsuit against Suraj and took him to court. 

    The case drew a lot of attention and was a sensation at that time. Hearing her story many people supported her and somewhere in our hearts even though there was this slight fear we stayed strong and were happy that we would definitely get justice.

    But…

    People say money can’t buy everything but looks like it’s pretty easy to buy justice in our country   

    Every witness we gathered turned against us and soon things started getting worse, the media started showing us as perpetrators instead of victims.

    The police used to visit our community every day and beat us. “They treated us like garbage,” the president remarked, his voice choking with tears,“They stripped us naked in the guise of inspection. Do our lives have no worth?”

    Hearing such comments there was a sting in my heart, somewhere deep down I was ashamed of myself.

    Wiping down his tears, the president continued, “Day by day our lives started getting worse. All the paths were blocked and we lost hope but a day came that shattered Maya into pieces, the day on which Maya truly died.The day her own father took back the case!”

  • Maya (Part – 2)

    Maya was among the kindest girls in our village. Whenever she could, she treated everyone in this village as if they were her own family, and helped them as best as she could. At the age of 9, Maya’s mother died while giving birth to her second daughter. She lived with her father, a farmer, and their family barely survives on the land they own. She stopped attending school when she saw her family’s condition and began helping her father and caring for her sister.

    Then she started teaching kids younger than her age, to help them get the education she couldn’t get, and somehow this also helped her family economically.

    The world turned upside down on that day for that young child; I don’t know what evil eyes were cast on her. We live in a village that is adjacent to the highway and surrounded by thick forest. In the late afternoon on that day, as the sun set, Maya went searching for her sister, who had not yet returned home after playing with other village kids.

    More than two hours had passed since Maya left the house. She went looking for her younger sister, who returned a few minutes later, but Maya was nowhere to be seen.

    Other locals, including Maya’s father, began looking for her. Our hopes began to fade as the night grew longer, and there was no sign of her. We were ready to give up for the day and head back home when we heard a faint cry. To our horror, we saw Maya half-naked in a pool of blood, tossed on the side of the road like a dead animal.

    “It was the most horrific thing I have ever seen.” With tears in his eyes, the president remarked, “Only the most inhumane person would do such a thing to a young girl.” Shyam had a look of grief on his face.

    By the time we brought her to the hospital, she was barely breathing. She was in a coma, but somehow, by the grace of the goddess, she survived. According to the medics, she had been sexually assaulted and suffered a severe head injury that resulted in significant blood loss. After learning of her daughter’s condition and what had happened to her, Maya’s father broke down and banged his chest in sorrow for his daughter’s suffering.

    When she awoke from her three-month coma, her first question was whether her sister had made it home safely. Her father became even more devastated over this, and our hearts sank.

    Maya was beginning to feel better and started opening up more about what had happened that night.

    She was kidnapped from behind that night when she was looking for her sister, and when she attempted to bite him, he slapped her, dragged her into the forest towards the highway, and assaulted her. When she tried to resist and started to scream, he hit her head with a rock and knocked her unconscious.

    When asked if she recognized him, she replied that it was her first time seeing him and that he appeared to be someone who lived in the city.

    Maya was on her way to the hospital with her father for a routine checkup when she saw a political party hoarding and momentarily stopped.

    “Beti, what happened? What’s wrong?” her father inquired.

    Maya remained silent as her eyes grew red with rage and began to slowly fill up with tears. She grabbed a rock, threw it over the hoarding, and started cursing, “This is the bastard who assaulted me!” She was talking about a man who was the party’s new youth leader.

  • Maya (Part – 1)

    Staring at the goddess idol with fiery eyes, the girl said, “I will not leave this place until I get justice.”

    The people surrounding her were shocked and frightened.

    As she finished talking and was silent, it started to pour, as though the sky had suddenly opened up to share her sorrow. As the sun began to drop and she began to get soaked by the rain, she vowed not to move from her position.

    A few years after the incident,

    “Lakshmi, where are you? It’s almost nine o’clock,” her anxious father inquired.

    “I’m almost here. Since there are no cars or taxis and it is raining, I am walking home. I’ll be there in ten minutes, so don’t worry,” Lakshmi remarked.

    She was wearing a dupatta over her head as she walked home in the pouring rain, but it was hardly noticeable. She cried out in a harsh voice as a truck nearly struck her as she got closer to home.

    Knock…Knock…

    Lakshmi was lying near the entrance, unconscious, when her father opened the door. He quickly gathered her in his arms and attempted to wake her. He glanced around as she gradually regained consciousness and noticed a shadow slowly fading into the night in the exact location of the incident. He prayed to the goddess while slowly joining his palms, causing shivers to run through his body.

    “Thank you,” he sighed.

    “She appeared again?” the Panchayat president inquired as a crowd gathered at the office the following day.

    Everyone said, “Yes,” in unison.

    “We know that she only protects us when our people in the village are in danger; she has never hurt anyone, yet we are afraid of her for some reason,” He said, “It’s also time for her soul to rest in peace.”

    “What are we going to do? You know what she wants!” a villager said.

    Everyone fell silent. Nobody knew the solution.

    At last, the president said, “Let’s speak with the temple priest; he might have an answer.”

    Everyone walked over to the temple. The priest was conducting the morning aarti at a simple temple dedicated to the goddess Durga, which was situated beneath a peepal tree.

    “I understand why everyone is here. The moment is drawing near, and everything will work itself out. Be patient for a few more days.” said the priest distributing the prasad.

    After hearing the priest’s words, people felt rested and went back to their houses.

    As days went on…

    The village president was looking through the Aadhaar card when he questioned, “You are Shyam?”

    “Yes, sir!” said Shyam.

    “Sorry, I can’t understand what’s written on your ID card so I asked for your Aadhaar for confirmation.” With a modest smile, he returned his Aadhaar card and said, “Your chief editor called and told me that you will be coming today. This is just a small village, what exactly are you looking for?”

    “I’ve heard that strange occurrences are happening in this village,” Shyam inquired.

    The president’s smile gradually disappeared.

    Shyam questioned directly, “Who is Maya?”

    “The last time I heard the name was a few years ago. You work as a journalist, right? You don’t know her?” Slipping back into the past, the president’s face went white.