Durga Takes Vengeance

Prologue: In Durga, Nikita outwits her assailant. The video goes viral. In the second episode Durga Arises, Nikita together with Wasan lays a trap for a wife abuser who finds himself debilitated for life with an accident injury.

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The dreams were back in the night and Nikita saw images of the white apparition. She also saw a blurred profile of what appeared to be a sadhu. She woke up and got ready for office in anticipation of an eventful day.

Her assistant at her Women’s Self-defence Institute briefed her on some recent cases that might interest her. One was about a woman who lost her husband in a hit and run accident at about 7 am in front of a shop which had encroached on the foot path. The shop was owned by a henchman of the local MLA. Both the henchman and the local MLA had been in the news for alleged raping of a girl and her subsequent murder but the case had not made any progress for want of any evidence. Police had been able to confirm that the girl who was brutally mauled and killed on the railway track by a speeding train perhaps was the girl who had been reported as missing by her mother. Police confirmation had come about through the dental identification process. The widowed victim of the road accident and also mother of two teenagers and the mother of the raped and murdered girl were being counselled at the Institute. When she met Tara (psychiatric counsellor), Tara confirmed that these women were seriously depressed and one reason was that they were not getting any justice in the case as the police had no clue.

In the afternoon Nikita and Wasan (runs a private detective agency) discussed the case over a cup of coffee at their favourite coffee place. Following that Chameleon (field operative) was put on the task to get some field level information. The constable whose wife works at the institute informed chameleon that hit and run accident involved a SUV but no more information was noted in the files and not been followed up. Chameleon went up to the spot at the same time as the accident took place and concluded that because of the encroachment on the foot path the victim had to step on to the road. But this by itself cannot be the reason for the hit and run for it was early hours in the morning and the traffic was yet to pick up. She noticed an old mendicant on the opposite side and bought a cup of tea and offered him. When she referred to the accident that took place a couple of week ago, the mendicant confirmed he had seen it and said it was a big black car and when she googled pictures of several models of big black car the old man chose a Scorpio. When she went up to the auto stand close by and asked the fellow auto drivers one of them did see a speeding black Scorpio on the fatal morning and this Scorpio was from somewhere from that locality as he had seen it being driven at a high speed at early morning hours on several other occasions too.

Based on a street savvy idea from Nikita, delivery boys of newspapers and milk were engaged to trace the black Scorpio. Many a women’s lives have been touched by the Institute and the women were related one way or other to one of the boys who readily took on the assignment. Within two days the independent bungalow where the Scorpio was parked was located. When the gardener of the independent bungalow was befriended over a cup of tea, Chameleon got to know that the Scorpio was driven around rather rashly by the son of the widowed lady. Further tete-a-tete with the lady cook established that the son was a spoilt brat and often seen in a drunken stupor and may be drugs as well. Mother and son were always quarrelling as the son accused her of sleeping with the local MLA and his mother in turn accusing him of wasting his time and squandering money on booze and drugs. Both the sources stated that the Scorpio was about 3-4 months old. Soon the Scorpio dealer was contacted who confirmed that the black Scorpio was registered in the widowed mother’s name and was bought 4 months ago. Questions about hit and run accident were dismissed by the manager. As Chameleon was walking out the old mechanic who was smoking a beedi under the tree signalled to her and passed a chit with his mobile no written on it and asked her to call in the evening. In the evening he told her that the Scorpio had come twice to the garage for some touching up of minor dents and he had noticed what appeared to be blood stains and fragments of flesh sticking on the left side of the frontal mud guard.

Nikita and Wasan came to a conclusion that the boy who drove around the black Scorpio was indeed the culprit but the evidence was not enough to engage the police in any serious way. But further suggested to Chameleon to keep track of the boy and do a profile.

By the following week, Chameleon had readied the profile. His name was Mahesh, aged 19 and he was the lone child to Priya, the widow of the real estate builder Chandra Gowda. He was a spoilt child as the parents never took proper care. It was rumoured that Gowda committed suicide when he drowned in the dam during a holiday on account of his wife’s illicit relations with the powerful local MLA who was known to the family but took a fancy to Priya. Mahesh hardly attended college and was seen around pubs and bars. Though one could not confirm drug habit wasn’t something Mahesh was not into. He often teased girls and picked up fights with boys. Generally, his classmates avoided him like a plague but a few boys have become a part of his gang. He was known for his rash driving in the college too.

Next step was to profile the shop owner who had encroached the foot path in front of his shop. Preliminary inquiry by Chameleon established that Manjunatha, the shop owner was a henchman of the local MLA. He had acquired the shop from the ailing owner who needed money for treatment for a very low price by force and threat. He had a track record of fights, molestation of women but police so far had looked the other way because of his proximity to the MLA. The SI at the police station was a close relation to the MLA and things were kept under wraps including the gang rape. Both Manjunatha and the MLA were god fearing it seemed as they had donated to the local temple and were seen at the temple every Friday. 

As Nikita was mulling over the next step, in walked the Vigilante Baba, she perhaps had seen in her dreams. That week end morning the trio of Tara, Nikita and Wasan were seen at the foot hills of a hillock near Vellore. While Tara and Wasan huffed and puffed their 45 minutes climb Nikita ran up the steps and was sipping cool water when the other two reached them.

Baba welcomed them with affection and explained to them how he extended his hospitality along with his valet, the deaf and dumb Vasu. Baba seemed to wink when he said that the crematorium was conveniently built at his suggestion by the Vellore Municipality. His hillock offered a one-way ticket to those criminals untouched by the police.

On the way back Nikita was described to her friends how the Baba had come and met her at her office and talked off joining forces in what they do. She mentioned it was very uncanny when Baba mentioned the actor case. She also mentioned that her usual dreams were back and she saw what appeared to be the Baba whom they had just met with. Her friends agreed that the whole experience was turning into something ethereal. Nikita soon slipped into a short sleep as Wasan had taken over the wheels by then and a plan got hatched up in her dreams.

In the following week Mahesh was sweating with fright as he read and reread the note which he found attached to the windscreen of his Scorpio. The note uncannily mentioned the two road accident deaths he had caused since he had been driving around the Scorpio and also gave account of his detailed back ground. It talked of a praayashchit at a hillock temple on a specified date and time. The note gave details about how to reach and the dress code. It finally warned of dire consequences should he share or discuss the note with any human being. The note was a touch ethereal and he was frightened. The note became magically blank when he reopened it later.

Manjunatha found a similar note stuck to the windscreen of his vehicle. It evoked a similar reaction in him as well, god fearing he was. He wanted to reach out to the MLA but checked himself as the note had warned him of dire consequences. He could not sleep the following nights as the rape incident kept flashing back in his mind. How could anyone get wind of this incident? a question badgered him day in and out. The girl’s eyes were still haunting him and now this note.

The following Sunday morning Manjunatha never returned home from his morning walk. He covered his face so that he could not be recognised by anyone and took a bus to the Inter-State terminal. He had shaved his head at a road side barber shop as was instructed in the note and took a bus to Vellore. Then he had walked to the hill temple in bare feet as was instructed. He had also left his mobile home and switched it off. He was only carrying a wad of notes for his return journey in his dhoti.

Mahesh was also seen at the Bus terminal with a shaved head with his face covered up with some washable paint. Last he was seen walking to the hill temple in bare feet.

The vigilante Baba received them in a well fashioned manner and made them comfortable. He was expecting them as he had seen the confirmatory coded message in the classified section. Their anxious mind came to rest as the sloka chanting got started. As they partook of the holy water laced with the Baba’s usual poison they died in their unconscious state. Baba and his valet took care of the rest. Soon the two bodies were burning in the crematorium.

Nikita next day saw the confirmatory message in the newspaper. Another case partly closed.

Neither the MLA who had received message of the missing of both Mahesh and Manjunatha nor the police did not link the incident. Police had come to a conclusion that Mahesh must have run away or gone on a holiday after a usual fight with his mother. Manjunatha, they concluded must have gone on a pilgrimage as his wife and others at the household had reported that Manjunatha was very disturbed the last few days and he was constantly calling out to God. However, the police did not have a satisfactory answer as to why their mobile phones were left behind, why they had not packed any clothes and why they had not told anyone?

MLA did not think much of the incident as he was pre-occupied with many other matters at hand. He got a bolt out of the blue when he received a note asking him to join Manjunatha and Mahesh in their praayaschita at a specified date and time at a hillock near Vellore. The note also referred to the brutal rape and the murder of the girl on the train track. The note had uncanny details of the murder of the girl on the train track. The details were known only to Manjunatha and himself. The following Sunday the MLA went missing and there was speculation in the local media as he was known for his notoriety. Nobody knew that the MLA’s body was turned into ashes in the crematorium, by the Baba.

The ACP who was given charge of the case thought the MLA missing affair had some link to the two earlier ones, all taking place on a Sunday. But he could not establish any evidence as there was no lead. When he briefed the Commissioner of Police about his theory without proof, the Commissioner scoffed at the idea. Let the sleeping dogs lie, he had told the ACP and sent him off.

Nikita, Wasan and Chameleon met at their usual coffee place and concluded the case was closed to their satisfaction. That was when Wasan said that day was International Mother’s Day and they congratulated each other, for some mothers can live in peace then onwards.

As she closed her eyes that night the white apparition took the form of Durga or so it seemed to Nikita. She noticed a faint smile that would be seen on a mother’s face as if to say nice job done.

As days passed by, Tara reported some good progress in the two depressed women who were mothers too.