Un believable success
Photo by MART PRODUCTION: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-group-of-people-planning-while-looking-at-the-laptop-7550298/
It was a bright sunny morning at Jokhang Temple Lassa, Tibet China. The place Bassui loved too much and had lived almost eighteen years of life there. Today his favorite teacher Mr. Chaisai had called him in office. He very well knew that it is now going to be end of his stay in beautiful Temple & a new life was going to start.
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-white-crew-neck-t-shirt-raising-his-right-hand-3799806/
Jokhang Temple the most beautiful & oldest temple built in 7th century is also the house of most venerated statue in Tibet. The Temple is spread over 6.2 acres of land and has glimpses of architecture of different centuries. The Temple was decorated with statues & big framed photographs of the persons who played important role in extension& renovation over the years & preachers & teachers of Martial arts.
Chaisai entered in office followed by Bassui. It was a big room which he had several times come but never before he had such feelings as on that day. He wanted to capture and save the setting & setup of room in his brain forever. It was nicely & neatly decorated with a Table & some chair, statues of important Buddhists in all corners with flash lights on them and big framed photographs of famous players of Martial Arts who had been a part of Jokhang Temple.
Teacher looked at Bassui for some moments and then said “My dear boy, new world is waiting for you. You are lucky to have successfully completed the education which we had and also passed all stages of Marshall arts.” He paused for a while and then said “I am happy that you are not only young, energetic, physically fit & also have the ability to fight with more than Twenty persons at a time”. Bassui trying to hide his wet eyes, bowed his head down.
He kept quiet for some moments and then sought permission to ask some questions which had been disturbing him during last years. Chaisi as usual shook his head allowing to proceed. Bassui while thanking him said “Sir, my features, complexion and height do not resemble with you and others here. Why am I different? Who am I”? Chaisi smiled and signaled him to sit on chair placed in front of his table.
Chaisi went in deep thoughts trying to recollect old memories.
He then said “it was a chilled rainy night of December nearly eighteen years back. I and my wife were alone at our home. after dinner, I was getting ready to sit nearby fireplace for reading while my wife started cleaning table that there was sudden knock at door. We got astonished as well a bit frightened. Within seconds door was knocked with more force and then hit with some hard item. My wife came close to me and asked not to open the door as there was danger of robbers.”
He took a deep breath and then continued, “I got up on third thrust and opened the door with fear. A young lady stood on support of door with a kid in one arm and a wooden box in her feet. She was not only badly injured but was also shivering due to cold weather. My first thought was of some beggar but then soon changed mind on looking at her dress and features.”
After a pause said, “We felt that she needed attention and help, so brought her inside. I dragged wooden box in and kept near main door which was closely watched by her. She did not look comfortable despite pain killers with hot cup of milk and sitting near fire place. The baby boy was bitterly crying before my wife took him in her arms. We decided to take her to hospital in morning but she expired after midnight. We could not communicate with her because of her different language.”
“Some hours later, I opened wooden box and found snaps of same lady with a smart man. In some snaps kid is also visible. The box contained many documents but were written in other language, so we could not get any help from them “. My wife decided to look after that child and named him Bassui.”
The young boy stared at his teacher for several moments with mixed feelings. There was silence in room for some time. He found himself lucky to be brought up in such a good environment or might have gone in some bad hands. He then asked the teacher about box. Chaisai got up and asked Bassui to follow. He passed through a corridor where walls were neatly decorated with photographs of Temple from different angles. Bassui had never seen that side. They entered a room which had different types of things but the room did not like a store room as it was very clean. The box was kept on a shelve along other goods. Bassui looked at the box for some time and then touched strong wooden box and looked costly. On opening that, he found several files with documents and two albums of snaps of a nicely dressed couple. Their features were like him.
Chaisi sensed the question in his student’s mind and said perhaps the family hailed from either India or Pakistan. Bassui closed the box to lift it and touched feet of his teacher as mark of respect & thanks. Chaisai tightly embraced him as he had taken care & loved a lot him over the last years. Bassui promised to remain in contact with him and then left with wet eyes & box in one hand. Walking out of Temple was not easy for him as he neither knew anything about past nor about future.
After some days he got a good job in a super market in Shanghai China. He shifted there and was surprised to see the infrastructure& altogether a different busy life. The job was respectable one on cash counter. The manager on seeing the letter of Jokhang Temple arranged a room for him as accommodation. His luggage was limited to a bag of clothes and the wooden box. In the evening, he joined a sports club for coaching of Marshall arts to youngsters. He worked hard there and within weeks club management increased his salary and allowed him to conduct some private classes after their time.
Despite busy schedule box always remained in his mind. and he Almost daily at night he used to see the snap of a beautiful couple carrying a baby and recall the moments of cold night explained by his teacher. His objective was to know detail of story hidden in box.
One day when he was about to be off from supermarket, he saw a young couple with same complexion & features as of him. He got an idea of seeking their help in understanding the papers & documents in box. He headed towards them and requested for some time. They could understand his language to some extent as they were there for studies. They got confused & surprised that a person looking like them could not speak their language. On hearing his problem, they decided to meet at night at a café near their apartment.
At night Bassui came to know that couple Abdullah & Hina were from Pakistan. Bassui gave them copies of the said documents for their opinion and served them cold drinks. On having quick review of papers Abdullah informed him that papers were related to some property in Pakistan near Sialkot (Pakistan). Bassui Informed Pakistani couple about his link with documents and story told by his teacher. On hearing all that Abdullah promised to read all the documents and then give him its summary. Bassui got impressed when Hina refused to take any charges against it. They left on exchanging contact numbers.
A week later, Abdullah called Bassui to inform that all documents had been read and summary prepared. Same night they met again at same place but in a friendlier environment. Abdullah gave him a paper of summery of all documents and with details. Bassui was delighted to see it as it was typed in Chinese language. Abdullah had taken help of a Chinese class fellow for that.
Bassui was informed that his parents Ali and Nadia were Pakistanis and Muslim by religion. They had settled in China for Business. They during a vacation trip to Pakistan, persuaded their big property issue which had arisen in their absence During the follow up of the case he was murdered by Ch which is evident from police report registered by his mother Nadia. Abdullah also told that one file had all police and legal documents. His mother was threatened by Hashmat, so she escaped from there with her small son Rashid. Bassui listened all that with keen interest. He also got information that value of the said property was very high. The discussion continued till late in night and then left like good old friends.
That night Bassui could not sleep. He laid on bed, walked in room & sat on chair thinking on the points highlighted in last meeting. He tried to get answers to the questions in his mind. Who he was? Bassui or Rashid? Was he Buddhist or a Muslim? Why his mother left him to Chaisai’s house? Was there no mosque nearby? What happened to his mother? How enemies killed his father? Why his mother ensured to leave box on last night?
Next days were very hard for Bassui as while working in Super market & at club his brain was stuck at one-point Rashid or Bassui? He was also thinking that what to do next?
Couple of days later, Bassui called Abdullah and invited them on a dinner at a Pakistani restaurant. There he surprised them for his interest in being a Muslim and be called as Rashid Ali. He also shared his next plans of going to Pakistan for a longer period. Abdullah and Hina could sense his purpose of going to Pakistan and so tried to make him understand about the possible hurdles and difficult times there. Bassui listened carefully but did not change his mind.
Next morning Abdullah took him to nearby mosque to complete religious formalities and then to Pakistani embassy to show them the documents of his Pakistani parents. It was start of a lengthy legal process & documentations. Next evening Abdullah & Hina hosted a Hi tea in honor of Rashid. They also invited some other Pakistani families & students. Rashid was very happy & relaxed.
Now the objective of Rashid was to earn & save more & more money for the travel to Pakistan. In the next day’s Rashid often visited Abdullah at their apartment to discuss future program and for having details of Pakistan’s climate, culture, business conditions and other related points. He gathered all information’s regarding items that were being imported from China.
Weeks later, Rashid landed at Lahore airport. Hina had arranged in advance his stay at her close relative’s guest house. Mr. Mustafa owner of Orient Guest house at Askari Villas welcomed him and took him to room on 1st floor m having all facilities. It was a small guest house but had all necessary facilities including dining room, lounge, Tennis room and big lush green lawns on two side. Rashid liked the environment and locality which was neat, clean, calm & quiet.
He was also impressed by the hospitality and behavior of staff over there. The owner Mustafa & his family lived just beside the guest house. Within a week Mustafa introduced him to a nearby club’s owner where he started coaching Martial arts to young boys. Rashid was mentally relieved on start of earnings and so started collecting information’s of main markets to start small scale trading business.
Some days later one evening he met Mustafa’s young& smart daughter Errum at guest house reception. She was very courteous, polite & friendly. Within days they both had good terms. Erum’s parents also did not object on their friendly relationship. She soon offered him to teach urdu language which Rashid badly needed to have a better communication in market.
Life started moving smoothly as Rashid used to go to market in morning, club in evening while Erum went to her college in day. Despite daily busy schedule, they both waited for their session in guest house lawns. After months of hard work, Rashid was able to speak & understand small urdu sentences.
One evening Rashid told Erum that he wanted to push and follow murder case of his father. Erum was aware of his objectives as her cousin Hina had told his story in detail. Despite having no relationship with him, she got worried. She on her own tried to tell him that how difficult it was in Pakistan to pursue such old cases and how powerful land grabbers were. She kept on trying to convince him either to forget that incident or postpone the follow up for some months.
On knowing it Mustafa had a detailed discussion with Rashid in presence of Erum. It was decided that first Rashid would visit specific village near Sialkot just to collect firsthand information. Mustafa could feel the concern and worry of her daughter.
In next two days Rashid finalized his visit plan. He left guest house in early hours on the car arranged by Mustafa. It was very hot morning when he reached the area near Sialkot after more than three-hour drive. The road was bumpy and the area was totally different to the localities seen by him in Lahore. It was more or less like a village with small houses, streets and agricultural lands all over. People looked uneducated and children playing in early hours in dirty clothes and some naked.
He took out the map & address written by Mustafa. Since it was too early for opening of markets even on main roads. He came across a reasonable person Liaqat who was property dealer by profession. Rashid introduced himself as a buyer of some land. It was difficult for Liaqat to understand Rashid because of his way of speaking but even then, he was very accommodative. Liaqat opened his office and started explaining him about the whole area.
During the talk Rashid came to know Ch. Hashmat had died and his elder son Ch. Waseem looked after all matters after him. He said that Waseem was not a good person by nature and no property could be sold or purchased without his will. Liaqat advised him to purchase land in nearby area and offered his services in that regard. He further told that all boundary area was farm house of Ch. Hash mat’s family. He also warned him of going near that farm house.
Rashid came out of office and asked his driver to take car towards farm house. It was really big spread over several acres. Huge & strong boundary wall was all around it for safety and security which clearly reflected difference in class and living style. There was complete silence inside & outside the wall as it was a prohibited area. Security was very strong on two gates of palace.
The gunmen at main gate got alert on their second round and noticed that car was not of that area. The gunmen fired some bullets in air which was a signal for the driver to stop the car. The driver got frightened and switched off the car on spot. Within a fraction of seconds four strong persons heavily armed came around the car. The driver was slapped by one person and asked to leave the car. The other persons started questioning Rashid. They became more doubtful about him when he spoke in different style. They took hold of him and almost dragged him & driver inside the big iron gate. Rashid did not resist at all as he wanted to see the inner of building.
He was astonished on entering. He always thought that The Temple was the biggest & the most beautiful building but the farm house was spread on a far vaster area. They tied him and his driver with two different strong trees. The driver cried for mercy It was a very hot day and very difficult for Rashid to stand there on hot sand under open sky in hot wind.
Half an hour later Rashid noticed that some persons were watching him from a far distance. The guards standing there got alert and Rashid could understand them saying” Chaudhary sahib is coming”. Soon Rashid saw a jeep coming towards them with three persons. By that time Rashid clothes had gone full wet and he was badly sweating but he got alert. He knew that time was less for him. All the guards were attentive towards jeep and so he availed those seconds. He pulled a blade from his upper pocket of shirt with mouth and cut the rope to loosen his right arm. He stood straight when jeep parked some feet away from him. A tall fatty man shouted at him asking his name.
Waseem abused his staff of their negligence and ordered them to teach Rashid a lesson. On this Rashid said that he had come there to see murderer of his father. Waseem got surprised and signaled his staff to stop for a while. He then enquired about his father. Rashid replied” Ali Nazir owner of this property. He was murdered more than twenty years back by Ch. Hashmat and his sons”.
Waseem thought for a while and the whole incidence came in his mind. He laughed like a wild animal. Guards’ attention diverted for a while and those moments were enough for Rashid.
He quickly cut the remaining ropes and jumped on guard standing close to fatty man. His leg hit on guard’s chest with full force and then immediately held neck of fatty man with strength. Action was completed in seconds and none of guards was mentally prepared for that. The fatty man felt strange force around his neck and the grip was becoming tighter with each second. He said in a week voice “Aim Ch. Waseem son of Ch. Hashmat. We will not leave you alive”.
Rashid hit him on back with his other hand and asked his guards to lay down all arms. Rashid hit him in belly with his knee which forced him to admit that they had murdered his father. Two guards jumped towards Rashid but Rashid responded very quickly. They fell on ground badly crying. He once again took quick control of Waseem’s neck and twisted it some force and he fell down on ground crying. Rashid sat down and gave a quick jerk to his right arm which broke the bone. Waseem badly cried for mercy. Rashid instructed the guard to untie his driver who was standing with open eyes. Rashid asked his driver in loud voice to call police. After some minutes police came but stopped outside the main gate as they did not have the courage to cross the boundary.
The condition of Waseem was getting worse inside and he wanted water but no one could come near him. Then Waseem was forced to ask police to come inside. On entering SHO with his force was astonished that a single person had caught hold of Waseem and all his guards were standing idle at a distance. Rashid twisted arm of Waseem and he cried badly. Then Rashid took out a small cassette recorder from his pocket and asked the police to hear the voice of Waseem admitting the murder of his father. While police heard the conversation, Waseem said with pain “Yes, we did it. I will not spare this boy also “. Police handcuffed Waseem and his guards.
That night Rashid reached guest house late. Erum was very much worried and eagerly waiting for him. As soon as she got the information about his arrival, she along his father reached there to know what happened the whole day. On hearing all that Erum felt proud and thanked Allah for unbelievable success.
In the next days Rashid had to go several times to police station for follow up of case. A case was filed by him in court on basis of all the documents left for him by his mother. During these days Rashid talked with Mustafa for hand of Erum which he happily accepted. The marriage ceremony was attended by Abdullah & Hina also. The newly wedded couple shifted to a small rented house near Mustafa’s house.
Soon after the marriage Rashid won the case in court for custody of property and Waseem was given life imprisonment. Rashid sold some land and bought a beautiful house for Erum near guest house. The big farm house was converted in college & university which started a new source of income for Rashid & Erum. They then lived a happy life. Rashid was able to take revenge of his father’s murder and complete the task left by his mother. This all had been possible because he stuck to his objectives despite all hurdles.
