Vikas Swarup - Six Suspects

'I agree. By the way, are you going to Delhi tomorrow to be present at the verdict in your son's case?'

'No, I will be attending Brar's funeral in Lucknow. That is the least I can do as Home Minister.'

'I must say, that's very decent of you, Jagannath. Best of luck.'

'Thank you, Chief Minister Sahib.'

'Dad?'

'Yes, Vicky?'

'Just wanted to say thank you. The acquittal has lifted a massive weight off my mind. There was a time when I actually feared I might be going to jail.'

'Don't thank me, thank Guruji. All this is the result of his blessings. Ever since he asked me to wear blue sapphire, one miracle after another has happened. All my rivals have bitten the dust. He has recently returned from his world tour. I am going to thank him personally.'

'And I am going to party! The acquittal has to be celebrated. It will be the biggest bash of my life. I have consulted an astrologer and he says the most auspicious date will be 23 March. I will do it at Number Six. You have to come, promise?'

'It is not a good idea, Vicky. There is still too much heat on the case. Let the public outcry die down, then we will see.'

'I am not worried. The judge has given me a clean chit and no amount of chest-beating is going to change that. So put the day in your diary: 23 March. And I promise you, Dad, no one will get shot at this party. (Laughs.) OK, I gotta run now. Bye.'

'Bye.'

'I am calling from the Chief Minister's office. Chief Minister Sahib needs to speak to the Home Minister.'

'So is your boss also calling to congratulate Bhaiyyaji? He is three days late.'

'How would I know? Just put him on.'

'Why are you always in such a sour mood? I am putting you through to Bhaiyyaji.'

Beep. Beep. Beep.

'Namaskar, Chief Minister Sahib.'

'Have you seen the reaction to Vicky's acquittal, Jagannath?'

'Yes. But you know these media people, they are never happy. They only want to present the negative picture. Anyway, they may write whatever they want, it is not going to reverse the verdict. Vicky has been acquitted of the murder charge and that is what counts.'

'But what about public opinion, Jagannath?'

'I don't care about public opinion. I never have.'

'But I do. The party does. The whole country is in uproar, Jagannath. Candlelight vigils are being held from Amritsar to Alleppey in protest at Vicky's acquittal. Protest marches are being organized in eighteen States by NGOs. Lucknow University students are threatening to immolate themselves. Trade unions have called for an indefinite strike. The TV channels have only one story. Magazines are organizing text-messaging campaigns. Even the Daily News has established a Ruby Gill Fund to raise money for the victim's family. No case in India 's history has attracted the kind of attention this one has. The judgment has been condemned by one and all. There is even talk of a re-trial. All this has placed us in an untenable position.'

'So what can I do? Should a father disown his own son?'

'Well, when the son is a black sheep, the father has to make some hard choices.'

'I cannot believe that we are having this conversation. My son has been acquitted, not convicted.'

'Doesn't matter. He has lost the battle of public opinion. And for a politician, eventually what matters is public opinion.'

'But Chief Minister Sahib, the media is mad. You know how they trivialize things. They don't show fifty miners trapped inside a coal mine, but all channels will immediately start covering some cat trapped in a well.'

'Yes, I know. But this only goes to show the power of the media. They dictate what we watch, when we watch. They are the ones who make and break public opinion. We will not be able to withstand the public outcry on this issue. It will sweep us out of power unless we do something now.'

'So what do you want me to do?'

'The High Command has taken its decision. You have to choose between Vicky and your Home Ministership. I want your resignation on my desk by tomorrow afternoon. If you prefer, we can say that you resigned on health grounds.'

'Your health may be bad, not mine. I am a fighter. And I will not take this lying down. Let me spell it out for you clearly: if you dismiss me, by tomorrow afternoon your coalition government will be gone.'

(Laughs.) 'You may be a mafia don, Jagannath, but in politics you are a novice. Give in gracefully and you might live to fight another day. In politics, everyone makes a comeback. But if you go against the High Command's dictate, not only will it end your political career, it might force us to end your criminal career as well.'

'Use these threats on the eunuchs in your Cabinet, Chief Minister Sahib. There is no one man enough in the State to challenge me.'

'You are compelling me to dismiss you.'

'And you are compelling me to become a rebel.'

'Fine. Then the battle lines are drawn. Let us see who prevails.'

'Yes, let us see.'

(Disconnect.)

'Hello?'

'Pranam, Guruji.'

'Jai Shambhu.'

'When are you returning from Allahabad to Mathura?'

'As soon as the Magh Mela ends. Why?'

'Guruji, I need your blessings.'

'What for?'

'For the greatest battle of my life.'

'I thought you had already won that. Vicky has been acquitted. My coral ring proved to be very potent.'

'Despite that, the Chief Minister is intent on dismissing me. So I have decided to enter the arena. It will be a fight to the finish. Either he will remain standing or I will.'

'You have my blessings, Jagannath. I have recently seen the Chief Minister's horoscope. His stars are in decline and yours are on the way up.'

'Thank you, Guruji. With you on my side, I can take on anyone, even the Chief Minister.'

'Jai Shambhu, Jagannath. May victory be yours!'

'Jai Shambhu, Guruji.'

'Hello, Tripurari. Are you still in Hardoi?'

'Yes, but this is called telepathy, Bhaiyyaji. I was just about to call you to congratulate you on your performance in the Assembly today. The attack on the Chief Minister was marvellous. So subtle. This is called killing with kindness.'

'Now the gloves are off, Tripurari. He wants to dismiss me as Home Minister. Says the High Command is worried about the negative publicity regarding Vicky's acquittal.'

'How dare he? We will dismantle his government brick by brick if he so much as thinks about dismissing you.'

'That is what I need your help for. If by tomorrow I am no longer Home Minister, then by the end of the week the Chief Minister should also lose his chair. We need to plot his downfall. How many MLAs do you think will be willing to come with me?'

'Let's do the arithmetic, Bhaiyyaji. To bring down the government, we need to engineer the defection of only fifteen legislators. We already have a solid bloc of twenty MLAs, all of whom are your followers. We can cut off the Chief Minister's power faster than the State Electricity Corporation's next blackout.'

'It is not that simple, Tripurari. I am playing for very high stakes. It is no longer a question of simply bringing down the Chief Minister. I want to really rub his nose in the dust now. So I have decided to stake my own claim for the post.'

'You mean Chief Minister?'

'Why do you think I have spent fifty-five years of my life in this hell hole? With the money I have I could have gone to Delhi or Mumbai or even America. I stayed behind because I have always wanted the ultimate prize – the Chief Ministership.'

(Pause.)

'Then you are playing for very high stakes indeed, Bhaiyyaji.'

'Yes. I have been thinking, who remembers the bloody Home Minister of a State? Ten years from now people will not even know that I was once part of this government. But even in twenty years people will remember who the Chief Minister was. It is like becoming a part of history. And history is never forgotten. Look at Jagdambika Pal. In 1998, he became Chief Minister only for a day, but his name has been entered in the history books for all time to come. I too want that glory. Imagine, a hundred years from now, the history books of the State will still record my name as Chief Minister. Isn't that something worth fighting for?'