Wednesday, 14 February 2018

“The Communal card that rescued me while in distress”


The late Mohammad Amin Khan, Field Officer Oriental Insurance Company used to spend maximum free time with me. He was watching my activities closely. One day in September 1989, my landline 278777 buzzed and it was Mohammad Amin Khan on the other end. He expressed his outburst and accused me of being communal. He justified his charge for I used to give my total insurance business to Vijay Kaw instead to him, besides I used to send my vehicles for any breakdown to the workshop of Bansi Lal at Batmaloo.
Vijay Kaw was son of the cousin of my wife. Those days he was without any job. He was doing general insurance business as an agent of National Insurance Company and so he was my choice on priority. Besides, he earned my contract for electric fitting & fixtures of all my construction works.
Khan Sahab had never asked me for any insurance business. He carried the notion that his unspoken words should earn him my insurance business. My priority for Vijay Kaw, unemployed those days was to provide him with the little that I could manage. 
To cool fuming Khan Sahab, I checked all my insured properties and was delighted to find that insurance of our residential building was due for renewal. I paid for the renewal by an account payee cheque in favour of the Oriental Insurance Company. Roughed feathers got smoothened and relations became normal. The communal became secular with the little favourable business.
As usual four days before mass migration of Kashmiri Pundits, I left for Jammu on 16th January, 1990. Return was presumed to be by 1st March 1990, the first working day after winter vacations. Presumption proved wrong and each passing day till date evaded my return.
May, 1990 I got a phone call from Vijay Kaw from Srinagar. He informed me about the insurance renewal dates of my busses, matadors, and other vehicles. I told him that all my vehicles at Jammu were in the junkyard for want of fuel and usage and grew grass within. I requested him to let me know the insurance renewal dates of my immovable properties viz school buildings and bookshop. Those days in absence of mobile connectivity I repeatedly, in the hostile sun, phoned Vijay Kaw from STD booths, but he preferred not to oblige me. Now he had no business interests in me and I was no more Jija ji for him.
Insurance cover for all the properties insured by Vijay Kaw expired on different dates. Colossal financial loss was caused to me when the properties without insurance renewal were set ablaze by Jihadists on different dates.
August 1990, message came to me that our residential house at Zainakot Srinagar too was set ablaze by Jihadists. This was the only property that was not insured by Vijay Kaw. Luckily it had gone to Mohammad Amin Khan’s business. Somehow, the cheque book counterfoil was with me. I heaved a sigh of relief when I checked the counterfoil date pertained to September 1989. The insurance of the property was in force until September 1990 a few days ahead of the day it was reduced to rubble.
Till date Vijay Kaw did not disclose the reason of his betrayal and the same is a riddle to me.
Pray the Lord may prune my vices.

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