Haunting in Dwarka Sector - 9

I am sure you all have a curiosity to know about the unexplained, the paranormal, the supernatural, and all other weird and strange things and phenomena. These phenomena and incidents are in themselves an enigma; as they don’t have any rational explanation to them. Take for instance the incidents of the Monkey-Man, the Muh-Nochwa Gang, The Naleba Legend and the most inexplicable incident of the statue of Lord Ganesha drinking milk. Such kind of incidents and phenomena are not restricted to the Indian sub-continent only; rather they are universal. I am sure you have heard of the Myrtles Plantation Haunting in Louisiana, the Haunted Penn State Asylum, the strange occurrence at Bermuda triangle, the hauntings of a Scottish castle, the island of Dolls in Mexico, the haunted prison in Italy, etc.

India too has its fair share of haunted places and locations. For instance Bhangarh and Kuldhara in Rajasthan, The Dancing Lights in Bengal, The haunted apartment complex in Mumbai and many more. New Delhi, being the capital of the nation, and being the most progressive metropolitan cities of the world; too has its share of haunted locations. Places like Sanjay Van, Agrasen Ki Baoli, Khooni Nala, Jamali Kamali Tomb, and Lutyen’s Cemetery etc. are some of the most famous haunted locations of the capital city. It is believed that restless spirits of these locations roam the long nights in search of salvation. It is further said that if any unwary human gets in the way, then it’s his fate. One such location is the area surrounding the Dwarka Metro Station at Sector-9. According to beliefs and witnesses, people have seen either a woman or a young girl roaming in the streets in the dead of the night. When people have tried to call out her, it seems to have vanished into thin air right in front of them. This has further propagated the legend of the haunting.

My story is based on this particular legend only. I have been inspired to write this story after hearing about a particular incident that occurred around 15 years back. Though, I have yet to experience this phenomenon yet. For reasons of security, I have changed the names of the people. I hope that you like this story.

Rajesh, Tarun, Asheesh, Vishal, and Rohit were fast friends since childhood. All of them had studied in the same school and had completed their graduation also together. Their friendship was so strong, that they were called the ‘Paanch Pandavs’, ‘The Five Man Army, ‘The Famous Five’ etc. by the neighbours and the locals of the area. Everything they did, where ever they went, they did it together. Even their interests were very similar to each other. Rajesh was the oldest and boldest amongst the five, next in line was Tarun who was also brave and courageous, Asheesh was the wise one, Vishal was a fun-loving and adventure-seeking guy, while Rohit was a reserved and calm guy of the lot. All the rest of the friends used to tease Rohit and called him ‘The Monk who did not have a Ferrari.’

Anyways Rajesh and Tarun had an unusual interest in all things supernatural/paranormal, weird and unexplained etc. The other three friends used to tease them always but would stick together in case if anyone else would dare to make fun of them. Which was a bonus for Rajesh and Tarun as always were conjuring new adventures and explorations into the unknown phenomenon? This, as usual, irked the other three friends and even their respective families. Moreover, the organizations where each of them worked also used to grow frustrated and tired by their constant leaves of absence due to their particular interest. Despite all this Rajesh and Tarun always managed to convince the rest of the guys and all the other people in their endeavours.

Something like this happened when Rajesh called Tarun and asked him to come over to his place as something very interesting had come up. This piqued Tarun’s curiosity and he kept wondering what it could be throughout the way to Rajesh’s residence. When he finally reached Rajesh’s house, he was surprised to see a mischievous and excited glint in his friend’s eyes. Then Tarun asked him ‘what’s the matter? Why did you call me in such a hurry’? Rajesh was pondering some newspaper articles and the internet on his laptop. So he looked up and asked him to come closer and see the article. ‘See this, Rajesh asked’. Tarun could only some old article about a supposed haunting taking place at a particular location. When he could not understand this, he again asked ‘So what, this is some old story and anyways what is its connection of you calling me here? 

Rajesh then again peered into the article and said ‘look we both are interested in supernatural and paranormal phenomenon; so I thought let’s give it a look and find the authenticity of the claim.’ Tarun was taken aback a little by the spontaneous explanation given by Rajesh, and yet internally he felt the excitement building. So he asked ‘what about it and how are you proposing to do so?’ Rajesh explained that he had been researching about this for some time now and even talked to some people of the area. According to him, the responses were mixed; that is few people believed in the claim, while others were too scared to even talk about it. Then Tarun asked ‘what about the others, will they agree to this?’ Rajesh was already anticipating this and he replied ‘I have already spoken to Asheesh and Rohit, and they seem to be ready, it is only Vishal who is out of the station right now’.

So they had to wait for Vishal to come back the next day and then they pitched the idea of investigating this particular phenomenon. Vishal was always ready for some fun and he readily agreed. The next thing they had to do was convince their respective families and their organization for the leaves. Which neither the families nor the organizations was willing to accept at first but had to succumb to persistent requests and pleas. Then they arranged for all the necessary recording and other technical equipment required for this project. Lastly, they had to decide on a date and day. This after a lot of arguments and brain-storming was finally reached.

It was a Monday night in the winters in January. On top of that, it was one of the chilliest days in the entire month and it was very foggy also since dusk. Anyways, it was Asheesh and Vishal who went to pick up Rajesh, Rohit and Tarun from their homes. All of them had packed coffee flasks and had donned extra layers of warm clothing as it was really cold outside. During the one and half hour journey to their destination, everyone was excited and nervous at the same time; that is all except Rajesh. He was in fact, in a gregarious mood and tried to cheer everybody else up. This prompted a curt response from Asheesh that ‘as it is very cold and on top of that you are taking us on a ghost hunt, you must be out of your mind’. Everybody burst out laughing upon hearing this which lightened the atmosphere in their vehicle.

Soon they reached their destination and it was around 1:30 a.m. in the night. The metro station was shut at this time and the lights around it gave an ominous glow to the surroundings. The strangest part was that not a single soul could be seen on the streets except these five; not even a stray dog or a cat.

As we know things which happen are always pre-destined to occur. Something like this happened with our five hunters. From the moment they got out of the car, Vishal started feeling uneasy. He even told this to Asheesh, who asked him to keep quiet. In a sarcastic tone, Asheesh said ‘Vicky you were the most excited to come here and now you are getting cold feet’. Vishal did not bother to respond to this and kept walking with the others. Strangely, just like in the movies, the weather took a mysterious turn and it started to turn windy and chillier. The five friends kept on walking and filming on either side of the particular spot. All the pavements on either side were empty and up ahead they saw a temple which was built right across the intersection. According to locals, this temple was built right after an incident; so that the spirits of the dead cannot disturb the living. Rajesh had heard about this temple which was closed at this time but its gates were open and a small 60 watt light bulb was on in the porch of the temple. He looked back at his friends and told them about this temple and also he said ‘that we have to walk a couple of clicks more and go to this particular park where this purported spirit has been known to accost people.

Although they were supposed to just hang out near the metro station, when they heard that they had to go a little further; all of them started having misgivings about the whole project. On their way ahead they saw a big banyan tree, which was surrounded by all kinds of religious photos of gods and goddesses; also they saw tridents cemented on the sidewalks with lamps burning on the side. The atmosphere typically reminded them of a Bollywood movie and it felt that as if someone or something was waiting for them in the p

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ark.

Despite their fears and misgivings, they trudged on ahead in the bitter cold and windy weather. As if to impede them, nature was also hampering their journey by intensifying the fog. At one moment, all of them had to switch on their flashlights as visibility was becoming virtually impossible. All this while there was not a single soul to be seen on the streets. Rohit to cheer up the atmosphere tried to crack up some jokes but was shushed by everyone. Then a few moments later, he again started humming a haunting number from one of the old Bollywood movies. This time Vishal and Tarun gave him a dressing down by saying’ as it is our nerves are frayed and you are scaring us more by singing this song’.

Anyways when they reached the park, Rajesh briefed them a bit on the supposed encounters in this spot. He said ‘that people have been jostled by some unseen force, or even people have been slapped upon by an unseen force’. He further said that many people have seen a young girl sitting morosely in one corner crying and sometimes, a young woman roaming around the park. When they have tried to interact with them, both of them have seemed to vanish into thin air. According to news reports, people have also heard a loud and piercing scream and laughter coming from the darkest corner of the park during evening and night time. All of this further creates panic among the friends but they still are willing to investigate this and bust its myth for well and good.

Well, things have never seemed to go as we have planned, and there is always a Law called ‘murphy’s Law’ which governs our decisions and lives. This is exactly what happened with the five of them. From the moment they stepped into the park, their lives seemed to change forever. This is how it happened.

As they entered the park, the wind started howling faster and the fog was as heavy as it could be. Despite this, the five of them moved on ahead, with Rajesh and Vishal taking the lead. Followed by Rohit, Asheesh and Tarun. All of them had switched on their recording cameras and audio recorders the moment they had entered the park. It was the time when Rajesh was about to explain in brief about their investigation and also about the history of the phenomenon; it was then that they heard the loud and piercing laughter and scream. At first, all of them jumped in shock and surprise. Rajesh too was startled by the sudden interruption. They just looked here and there but could not find any sign of the presence of any animal or human around them. When again Rajesh and Vishal both started simultaneous investigations, the scream again could be heard and this time it was loud and distinct to everyone.

This time everyone could feel the uneasiness in a more profound way that was creeping towards. Before anyone could react or say something; all of them saw a white shadow pass over them at incredible speed. This happened a couple more times along with an increase in the intensity of the piercing laughter. Now everyone was truly scared, including Rajesh.

Somehow they managed to get out of the park and run for their lives. Another important thing that began to happen was that the street lights started flickering. This further increased and fear and panic amongst the five friends and they somehow managed to reach the temple and find refuge there.

The next morning all of them were visibly shaken from the previous night’s experience, and especially Vishal and Rohit. They were so scared that they jumped with some so much terror at any untoward movement towards them. Anyways, all of them quickly left for their car with first light, before anyone could spot them. Now before they went to their respective houses, Rajesh had a bit of advice and a word of caution for them. He said ‘don’t discuss this with anyone as people will not believe you and make fun of you. Also don’t act abnormally; try to behave as normal as possible’.

It is from this point onwards that the real trouble started for the five friends. Few days after the incident Vishal gives a frantic call to Rajesh and says’ help me, buddy, she is going to get me’ Rajesh is stunned and surprised by this outburst and immediately leaves for Vishal’s place. Here he finds Vishal huddled in his room, and all the windows are boarded shut and curtains drawn over them. He also finds out from Vishal’s family that for the past few days he has been acting strangely. When Rajesh asks how, they say ‘he doesn’t eat or drink properly, stays in his room, gives furtive glances everywhere’. When Rajesh confronts Vishal he breaks down and says ‘Yaar, that witch has been haunting me for last so many days. I feel that she is everywhere and constantly watching me.’ He further says ‘that I cannot eat, drink or sleep properly.’ Rajesh then tries to console him and says that ‘it’s all in your imagination and think of your family’. He even gives Vishal a talisman and says ‘that this will protect and help you to get a good sleep’. Vishal thanks him profusely and everything goes back to normal for a few days.

Just a week later Rajesh and rest the friends are devastated to hear Vishal’s suicide. Immediately they rush to his house and find a distraught and grieving family recount to the police how Vishal hanged himself from the ceiling. The police officer in charge then questions each of the four friends. Rajesh, Asheesh, Tarun and Rohit are grilled for hours before the police officer Raj Kumar Singh is convinced that they had nothing to do with it.

Meanwhile, Asheesh and Tarun decide to talk to Rajesh about this as they too are scared. At first, Rajesh just tries to reprimand them for harbouring such kind of thoughts. It is when Rohit says that even he too is kind of experiencing the same thing as Vishal did; it is only them Rajesh grasps the significance of the situation. One thing I forgot to tell you is that Pinky, sister of Rohit was in love with Asheesh. Here Pinky has also come along with them to Rajesh to ask for help. As time passes by and things start to come back to normal the four friends try to cope with the loss. Then one day suddenly Pinky gives a frantic call to Asheesh and Rajesh. On the phone just cries hysterically and reports that Rohit has met with an accident and is in the intensive care unit.

Hearing this now, both Asheesh and Rajesh turn pale and quickly contact Tarun. All three friends rush quickly to the hospital where they find Pinky and her entire family besides themselves. Just then the doctor passes by and Rajesh asks the doctor ‘will he survive doctor?’ the doctor looks up gravely and asks that Rohit was asking for Rajesh, Asheesh and Tarun. When the three friends enter the room, the three of them are saddened to see their friend struggle between life and death. Rohit somehow manages to beckon them and plead with extreme effort in Rajesh’s ear to save his friends and family, including his sister. Rajesh is too overwhelmed by this strange request and says ‘you are going to survive this buddy, we are with you’. Rohit just looks at them and with a sad smile says ‘that I have been lucky to have friends like you; it is, however, my misfortune that I will not be able to continue with you in your exploits any longer.’ With that Rohit takes a deep sigh and his last breath. Rajesh, Asheesh, Tarun and Pinky are too devastated and at a loss of words to even reply to Inspector Raj Kumar’s questions.

Things turn nearly ugly when one-day Asheesh and Tarun in a furious mood, along with Pinky go to Rajesh for a final confrontation. Here Asheesh and Tarun blast Rajesh for risking their lives and their friends’ lives in such foolish and useless projects. Before Rajesh could say anything, Pinky, who was sitting quietly at one corner of the room, suddenly blurts out crying ‘that Rohit had told her that someone was following him for the past few days’. When asked to elaborate further Pinky adds ‘Rohit was so scared of someone or something that he used to mumble in his sleep, or even while he was wide awake’. When Rajesh asks what did he say, Pinky says ‘that he said she is going to get me as she got Vishal’. Hearing this Asheesh and Tarun now demand some kind of solution from this problem. Rajesh now is too guilt-ridden and promises to help them any way he can. Sceptical of this promise, but still Asheesh and Tarun believe him. It was then after a long time of search and enquiries that Rajesh finally finds a mystic and recounts the whole incident to him. The mystic then promises to help them by performing a Pooja, which would get rid of the evil entity from their lives.

So Rajesh calls Asheesh, Tarun and Pinky and all of them attend this ritual and help themselves get rid of this evil scourge for so many days. From that point of time Rajesh, along with Asheesh and Tarun decide never to venture into any such foolhardy adventure ever again.

This incident was narrated to be a common friend of these friends and he requested me to pen this to paper so that people should think twice before indulging themselves in such kind of adventures.