The Narrative
So there
was this friend of mine who had to go pay her electricity bill and then get to
work. To her dismay, she found a long line of people waiting in line to pay
their bills. That day she learnt not to wait for the last day to pay a bill. As
you will see, a lesson well learnt.
So as she
resigned herself to being late to work and getting half a day’s pay getting cut
by getting in line, she knew that the boss was wasn’t going to happy. But this
was more important. If she didn’t pay the bill today, a lot of other people
wouldn’t be happy what with the earth-scorching heat in India rendering even
industrial strength fans useless.
So there
she stood, drops of sweat dripping down her forehead one by one like the
ticking of the seconds hand on her watch. One bill got paid, two, three, four…
and then something happened.
A man and
someone who appeared to be his valet came into the office. They discussed
something and the valet stepped into the back of the queue as his employer went
striding directly into the office, not giving a damn to the incredulous looks
of all those awaiting their turn.
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| Image Courtesy: happilyunmarried.com |
All this
took place in slow motion for her. You see, time tends to slow down the longer
you stand in a queue. Every minute becomes longer then the next and one gets
the time to ponder upon every thought running in one’s mind till they simply
run out eventually.
It was only
after she had exhausted every other thought that her mind, craving activity,
demanded that she divert herself studying those destined to sweat it out along
with her to avoid doing so at home later.
It was then
that the man and his valet had appeared from the sunlit doorway and proceeded
to do the things they had.
Fast
forwarding to five minutes later, when the man came out of the office, summoned
his valet to get out of line and bring his car around. Their work there was
done, the bill paid, the tea probably drunk and all without breaking a single
drop of sweat.
Aghast was
the word that she used to describe the expressions of her co –queue mates.
Piercing stares followed the couple out the doors, looks probably reserved for
the most hateful of criminals and dictators.
And the
moment they left, chaos erupted throughout the office. And by chaos, I mean a
wild, shouting, discourteous discourse between all those standing in the line.
Maybe it wasn’t so dramatic but I’ve been assured it wasn’t murmured whispering
of dissent either. Everyone was up in arms about the way that man’s bill had
been paid for he had definitely come to pay the bill and he had done it by
cutting the queue.
The Mindset
Cutting a
queue is considered an act that is viler than even murder in India.
With such a
population, queues always seem to be longer than the importance of work to be
accomplished at the end of them. And although corruption is an accepted part of
life now (debatable), it still invokes the kind of powerless hatred that comes
with not being able to stop people who engage in it.
The Takeaway
At the end
of this incident, an old woman made a very compelling statement that struck
right at the heart of “educated” society. She said, and I paraphrase, “The way
these literate people behave, it’s better to be illiterate.”
Such a
poignant statement from one so experienced is not to be taken lightly and
although the lady may be making a gross generalization enveloping all kinds of
people under one umbrella of honesty and corruption, the thought dos have
merit, at least in this case.
The Million Dollar Question
Assuming that
you who read this are literate, allow me to pose a question:
Is the
educated Indian really working towards abolishing corruption or engaging even
more in its depravity?
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