A brush with the real paradise

It was nearly year and a half since I last visited Kashmir . I  was in search of a good reason and as luck would have it, we were granted a month’s vacation .Those days my dad was posted in kupwara ,a remote town in northern Kashmir.I persuaded him to let me stretch my legs there and luckily he agreed.Soon I was out of Bengal and was touching the last strains of Delhi.Two hours later and a flight ,I was stepping on the pavement of Srinagar airport.I was welcomed by an army officer who escorted me to a bullet proof car which was headed by a mobile radar jammer,QRT(Quick Response Team) and three heavily armoredjawans on top! I was  soon heading towards Kupwara,my holiday home.It was ,and still  is,one of the hot beds of all counter-insurgency operations.Moments  flew by and we were zipping past picturesque towns of the valley and several apple orchards.One could easily identify the uniqueness and distinct panache of the natives and the Pathan suit laden youths.The weather was chilly and mesmerizing.Soon we were reaching the outskirts of Baramulla,a place which had found its place in the leading headlines of many national news.Screech….and we came to a halt.One ,two,three hours and we had a relentless wait due to a security blockade ahead.(Do note that these places are inaccessible by civilians since they are highly classified counter insurgency zones).I learnt that two CRPF vehicles had been mobbed and burnt.

As per the protocol ,we started and raced ahead.I soon experienced a heart wrenching scene as I witnessed umpteen masked people stoning our vehicle.10 seconds later ;we10 seconds later ;were out of the melee.Now , I was far away and an hour’s journey from home.Tired and weary,I requested them to stop  besides an apple orchard which had a small lake.Thebreathtaking view of the snow capped peaks and the pristine beauty of the  lake enchanted my senses.Suddenly a man dressed in pathan suit appeared out of nowhere and he offered me a basket of apples.I politely refused but he tried to coerce me into accepting them.As I leaned ahead to pick one ,he drew out a pistol and kept underneath his firanand in a fraction of second he aimed at my neck.Before I could react , he misfired and narrowly missed my ears.In retaliation the jawans(who were perched atop the vehicle) fired at his hand and he fell on the ground with a thump.Overpowered ,he was handed to the police later.I stood there motionless and brain dead.The officer held me up and safely guided back to the vehicle.In a few minutes the silence prevailed ,engine notched up and revved ahead,all the souls inside car seemed calm and composed.Silence is golden and so is time;it flew faster than I could get hold of it.Still reeling in shock,I reached in home before I could .This incident remains untold to my father till date(for reasons not to be disclosed) .But I fail to understand the heart of the scenario,MOTIVE?Did he believe me to be one of the defence personnel? Or he was a hired agent of some political faction.The answer remains to be in deep waters.Everytime I get a mental glimpse of this incident,my heart skips a beat and a chill runs down through my spine!!This is my rebirth and I am penning the demise of my past life…………..