The Day The State Split Asunder - 44

'Sir, I have some bad news!' Inspector Imtiaz said as he neared Arjun's desk. His eyes were completely devoid of emotions. 'We got the location data from the mobile network company. Rajath's mobile location was at his office only, the entire day till night.'

'What kind of a deadly stalemate is this! If at least his mobile was present at the location we would have arrested him,' Inspector Arjun snapped both of his fists on the table in frustration. The time is passing off and yet they couldn't confirm the suspect.

Imtiaz sat on the chair. 'But sir, I have one good news also!' 

'Good news! What is that?'

'I checked in our police records. Previously two complaints were filed against Dhyaneshwar and his firm in the year 1996. One complaint was about the fire accident which resulted in the death of fifteen employees and another complaint has been filed for the death of Akella Raghavendra.'

'Come again!' Arjun leaned forward, 'What did you say?'

'Yes sir, you have listened correctly, it's Akella Raghavendra. What Mr.RadhaKrishna said was correct. Dhyaneshwar is prime accused in his murder. But later the court dismissed the case as the evidence and subsequent investigation confirmed it was just a chemical leak that caused Raghavendra's death. The same was mentioned in the postmortem report as well.'

'When were these two complaints filed?'

'Sir, one was filed on 15th March 1996 and another on 06th June 1996.'

'Wait! Is Akella Raghavendra's murder case filed on 06th June 1996?'

'Yes sir.'

'Imtiaz,' Arjun stopped, and exclaimed with delight, 'One more mystery is solved!'

'Sorry, sir? I didn't catch that.' 

'I mean the mysterious date that we found in Suresh's diary in which the date 06… 06… 199. He might be referring to Akella Raghavendra's death.'

'Perfect resemblance sir! It means Suresh might have learned the truth about Akella Raghavendra's murder as well.'

'Might be, we cannot come to that conclusion as of now. We still don't have any evidence against Rajath which proves his involvement in Suresh's murder. Meanwhile, you do one thing. Go and meet Rajath's driver Veeresh.'

'Sir, we should also consider visiting Swamiji.'

'Even before that, I need to meet our commissioner Anand. He might suggest a better move. We can't waste time on that old closed case. I believe someone doesn't want us to arrest Rajath. There's some kind of conspiracy going behind in the background.'

'Ok, sir!' Imtiaz said and stood from his seat. While he was just about to turn back, he stopped and asked, 'Sir, I just have a casual question. Can I ask you if you don't mind?'

'Yes Imtiaz, proceed.'

'Now that the central government has decided to bifurcate the state into two, where do you wish to get posted? Will you wish to stay in Hyderabad or go to Andhra?'

'I am least bothered about it. Wherever I go, I will perform my duty with the same kind of dedication and determination. I don't have any problems whether I am allocated to Andhra or Telangana. But to be frank, I need to return to Andhra because that is where I actually belong.'

There was a knock on Swamiji's door. His servant Raju opened the door and saw Karthik standing in front of him.

'Karthik!' Raju said, and he then glanced at the travel bag in his right hand. 'Are you going somewhere or coming straight here?'

'I am going to stay here along with you and Swami uncle for a few days.'

'Why do you want to stay in this small house when you have your own house?'

'I came here for a winter vacation!' Karthik decided to have some fun with Raju.

'Winter vacation here in this house?' Raju asked in surprise. 'What kind of warmth and refreshment did you find here which I couldn't find from the past five years? And moreover this house may not be comfortable for you.'

'One doesn't need a big house to stay, but a big heart to allow someone inside. Swami uncle's heart is very big, bigger than queen Victoria's palace.'

'For how long you are going to stay?'

'Until my mission ends.'

'Which mission?' Raju asked, scratching his head in confusion.

'Uncle, you are questioning me like an immigration officer. Even they don't ask these many questions. Will you allow me inside?'

'Raju, what happened with whom you are talking to?' Swamiji came to the door and was surprised to see Karthik. 'Loverboy! When did you come? And what is this bag?'

'Uncle, I came here to stay along with you and I shall remain here until we accomplish our mission successfully. But this Raju uncle is behaving like an immigration officer. He is not ready to stamp on my passport. Tell him that I have a diplomatic passport and I don't need any visa.' 

'Good idea! For the first time, you have used your high IQ mind perfectly. But I will allow you inside only if you agree to my three conditions.'

'Conditions! What are they?'

'Number one. You must listen to whatever I say.'

'Done! I will listen to whatever you say. What is number two?'

'You must not do and plan anything against Dhyaneshwar or take any decisions on your own without consulting me.'

'Done. I will not make any decisions without consulting you. What is the last one?'

'You must not question anything.'

'Done! Can I enter now?'

'Yes, you can!' Swamiji said.

Karthik stopped in and embraced Swamiji tightly. Raju picked up Karthik's bag and placed it in the bedroom under Swamiji's bed. 

'Uncle, I can't say how excited I am to work with you,' Karthik said, releasing Swamiji from his arms.

'Me too dear! And what did you tell your parents?'

'I said I am going to Mumbai on an official visit'

'Good! And what happened yesterday? Did you propose to Sanjana?'

'Yes, uncle! I expressed everything about her. Not sure what she is going to do. I told her to take fifteen days to decide on me.'

'So, you are not going to contact her for fifteen days?'

'I did whatever I could from my side. I have to give her some time to think about me and I should not irritate her. Don't know what's written in my fate?'

'Don't worry, everything will be good,' Swamiji sat in his chair.

'I hope it does and also uncle I removed my old sim and purchased a new one so that I don't get distracted by anyone.'

'Karthik, it is certainly a smart move. And, in order to succeed in any kind of mission, we should cut ourselves from all possible sources of distraction.'

'Uncle, what's my objective for today? You told me yesterday that I need to meet Dhyaneshwar's son Rajath.'

'Yes! You need to meet him today.'

'What should I do? Are we going to give him any kind of warning?'

'No! I had already planned everything.'

'What is that plan?'

'Rajath is a party freak. Every Friday he goes to a pub. Today being Friday and December 31st, he will be going for a party at a pub in Jubilee Hills.'

'How did you get to know about his schedule?'

'Dear, I am a journalist. And do you think I have been just sitting alone in my home all these years? My sources are continually spying upon them. The only reason why I didn't make any move is because I was waiting for a perfect time.'

'Who are those sources?'

'I am not supposed to tell you that and you are not supposed to ask that.'

'Ok uncle!'

'That's like a good boy!' 

'What do I need to discuss with him?'

Swamiji rose and walked to the shelf. He took out a brown colored envelope which he racked inside a book and gave it to Karthik.

'What is this uncle?' Karthik asked, glancing at the envelope from all directions.

'Just give this envelope to Rajath. But don't give him directly with your hand.'

'If not from my hands then from whose?'

'It can be anyone. Maybe the waiter, bouncer, or anyone in the pub. But don't let Rajath intersect his eyes with yours.'

'I understood! I will take care of it, uncle. But what is written in this letter?'

'I will tell you once after you accomplish this first task. Sharp by seven, he will start from his office to High-Five Hills Pub. Your objective is just to handover this letter to Rajath and come back.'

Karthik nodded his head. 

'And still what else Karthik? Tell me how it all went yesterday with Sanjana?' 

Karthik and Swamiji sat down in their seats and discussed each other's personal lives. Swamiji in the course of discussion showed him his photo albums and even narrated his friendship with Sanjana's father Akella Raghavendra. 

'Uncle, you once said that Sanjana's father was a writer. Do you have the list of his published stories?' Karthik asked.

'I have it dear. His stories were published under the title 'Bhagyanagara Kathalu' in Andhra Velugu magazine. He published more than five hundred stories and every story was a masterpiece.'

'Did he publish any books?'

'No, he didn't.'

'Can you do me a favor by giving me the manuscripts of his stories?'

'What are you going to do?'

'It's a surprise!'

Swamiji smiled and walked into his bedroom. After ten minutes he came out carrying a big bunch of papers torn from the magazine. The papers have completely faded but the letters are still decipherable.

'These are the stories he had written so far,' Swamiji handed over the bunch of papers to Karthik. 'Please don't lose them. Once lost, it's impossible to get them again.'

'Don't worry uncle. Nothing goes wrong. I am having small work now. I will come before six.'

'Go wherever you want but be here by five.'

'Ok uncle!'

Karthik placed all the papers in a small carry bag and stepped out of his home. As said to Swamiji he came back by 05:00 PM. He picked up a nice designer t-shirt and blue jeans.

'Karthik,' Swamiji gave him the envelope. 'As soon as Rajath receives this letter, get out from there.'

'Do you have a photo of Rajath?'

'I almost forgot! Thanks for reminding me,' Swamiji picked a photo from the shelf. 'This is Rajath.'

'He is looking handsome in this suit,' Karthik said, looking at the photograph. 

'Forget about ugly and handsome. Do your work with extreme caution. The tempo that we are going to set now will set the tone for our next task.'

Karthik nodded his head. He then folded the envelope and placed it inside his pockets. He then bent down to touch Swamiji's feet. 'Please bless me, uncle!'

'When we are fighting for justice, victory is always on our side dear!'

Karthik reached the pub as expected. He sat at the corner and in the dim lighting, he faced difficulty in recognizing the faces from the distance. The loud music on the other hand made it difficult to communicate with the other person sitting next to him. He stood up and started roaming around, his eyes searching for Rajath. Few girls tried to drag him onto the dance floor to which he smoothly refused.

One hour has passed and Rajath hasn't come so far. He went back to the lounge and started gazing at the people around. Half an hour had passed and he started getting bored. He rose up from his seat and once again started his patrol. This time he could see a familiar face walking into the pub from the entrance. Unlike others, he was dressed in blue jeans with a black blazer. After taking peeks closely without falling into that person's radar he could confirm that it is none other than Rajath.

Rajath straightaway went towards the bartender and collected a jug full of beer. Shaking his head to the medley of Bollywood and Tollywood tunes Rajath began drinking his beer. 

Karthik devised a plan. He randomly pulled one of the barmen aside and gave him thousand rupees along with the envelope that Swamiji had given him. He pointed his finger towards Rajath who was seated with his back faced towards him and instructed the barman to give the envelope to him.

The barman was elated looking at the tip that he received and with the envelope, in his hand, he began his ascent towards Rajath. After the barman left Karthik slowly maneuvered, parking himself just ten feet away from the exit door. The barman almost crossed half the way. Karthik moved two steps with his pulse pacing faster.

Finally as expected, the barman reached Rajath and gave the envelope to him. In a flash, Karthik ran out of the pub gathering all the strength that he could without turning back.

'Who gave this?' Rajath asked the barman in surprise.

'That person sir!' The barman turned back, but Karthik was nowhere in sight. 'Just now he was here sir!'

'Where?' Rajath asked in his rough coarse tone.

'There sir at that table. But now I am unable to see him!'

'Get out you idiot!' Rajath cursed under his breath and gestured to the barman to move aside. 

Rajath opened the envelope and eased out the paper from it. His mind went blank after reading the content of the letter written in neat handwriting.

Mr.Rajath. All your good times have ended.

- From Gentleman

Rajath threw the glass hard on the floor and staggered around struggling to control himself. He caught one of the barmen by his collar and started abusing him in the harshest language. He already consumed two big jugs and the content of the letter further intoxicated him.  The bouncers came to the rescue of the barman being manhandled by Rajath and escorted him to the parking lot where Rajath's car is parked.

Rajath's driver Veeresh was sleeping inside the car. One of the bouncers tapped on the window. He woke up and squinted at the time on his watch, it was 08:18. He was surprised to see his owner coming early from the pub and wondered what made him reach the hangover phase this much early.

To be continued...