When SP
visited I received him politely to our main conference room. After initial pleasantries
and tea etc. he got on with his business.
I was asked to attend the enquiry first. I was
asked by him what was my caste. On seeing my Tilak he himself wrote “Brahmin”.
Then the Plant Manager 1 was called. He was a “Sharma” and hence against his
name was also written as “Brahmin”. Now it was the turn of the 2nd
Plant Manager.
When he was
called, he barged into the room opening the door with his foot. He was on the
cell phone. When he was asked his caste he was speaking arrogantly and told no
caste. The SP was a bit disappointed with his behavior. Thus VC who was the 2nd
Plant Manger was found to be in the wrong side of the law by the SP. Based on
the suspicion he was implicated in the case.
We were exonerated. A FIR was filed on the
insistence of the Minister and congress union against Plant Manager 2 Mr. VC.
VC hailed from Kanpur in UP. His father and brother were lawyers in UP. His
father in law was a retired DSP in Kanpur. Because of this he was under the illusion
that nothing would happen to him in this case. Police Men came to our factory
and took declaration from all three of us about our native, home town address
and permanent residence address etc.
They were
stating that they would send police man to our home for verification of our
activities in home town. To go and verify VC’s home they took money from us and
travelled to Kanpur. VC had arranged for their accommodation in local hotel
etc. where they stayed for a week. Despite that they returned without any
document from Kanpur police station verifying the antecedent of VC.
This too put
the local Police off as they thought that VC would arrange all that to get out
of the case.
Our company
had a regular lawyer in Shimla who pleaded all our tax and related cases. As
advised by our commercial head we wanted to use him in this case too. VC and
his colleague went and met this lawyer in Shimla. But he was very casual. He
told that so far no conviction had taken place under this act etc. He did not
even file for an anticipatory bail.
I was
periodically updated by the local police station and district law officer who
had become a good friend by then. One day DSP called me and took me aside and
told that they were under pressure from Shimla to file an update about the
status of this case. He showed me on his computer screen the reports
periodically filing by way of lies to dodge further proceeding. He also warned me,
if we did not do anything may be our VC would go behind bars.
As Shimla
lawyer was not useful we found a local lawyer in Una and handed over the case
to him. By then it was becoming a regular feature to see Khaki clad policeman
visiting factory in search of VC. We used to ask VC to stay at home or go elsewhere.
VC who used
to stay right opposite my house was getting disturbed by now. His wife was
pregnant and was in an advanced stage ready for delivery. She did not seek any
help from her mother or mother in law and wanted to manage the delivery all by
herself alone. This too was putting pressure on VC.
Keeping this
in mind I fixed an appointment with the local lawyer one evening and wanted to
meet him in his home as visit to the Sessions Court was proving tiring. We did
not have any place to sit and talk freely.
........to be continued
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