Weird, Isn't It?

Today was the weirdest day in my life. It’s Wednesday, June 08, 2011, and I woke up early to drop my girl friend to her workplace near Tank Bund and after dropping her; the time was around 10:00 AM, I was walking along the Hussain Sagar Lake. The lake is the most attractive scenic beauty of Hyderabad. As I was walking by there was this mad beggar who was fooling around there and came to me asking me to look in the lake pointing towards a view point. Initially, I just ignored him and walked through, enjoying the lake view, glaring through the beautiful view of the Hussain Sagar.

I just looked over to the point where the beggar was pointing and my eyes popped out after what I saw floating in the water. It was a dead man's body, face turned down!!; floating approximately 6 feet away from the wall of the lake. I was astonished and was just staring at the body for few minutes thinking of what should I do next!!

I immediately called the Police on 100 but the line was busy for a long time. Then I remembered seeing a police van near the Darga which was a 100 yards away from the point. I rapidly approached  the police van, reaching it I found nobody was in and around the van. I looked around and found a Traffic police constable at the Lower Tank Bund crossing and rushed towards him to deliver what I saw. I told him the situation and he just threw it away, as if nothing has happened. He asked me to look around the Darga for a Police Inspector who may help me out. I looked everywhere but couldn’t find anything. 

Then I immediately called 108 Helpline whose response was fast and it instantly connected me to the control room and I was asked to explain the location of the situation. After a 20 minutes or so few police constables came on motorcycles with a local security in-charge. I showed them the body to which they rudely asked me to clear the place and leave. They didn’t wanted anybody nearby. I inquired them when will they pull out the body from the water, as they were not putting any action towards the situation but no answer. I walked away and was watching them from a distance on what these guys would do, but was dumb struck watching their reaction. They did nothing about it!! They stood there for a while and moved on, dispersed, as if nothing has happened. I tried to inquire to one of the constable but their discourteous reaction turned me into thinking whether they are asked to ignore it or something fishy is going on in their head.

I stood there for a while waiting if anyone would come and do something about it at the same time I was trying to call my girl friend to tell her this thrilling situation. But she was not responding to my calls, must be busy with her work. Then I called my best friend to narrate the situation and asked him some advise; he suggested me to move out of there and don’t put my head in it...

He was concerned about, me not getting fussed up with the police prosecution. He was worried if they would halt me with them asking me to be a witness and fix me up with the situation. I did what he asked me to do, thinking that I have done my bit of the social responsibility. I moved forward and saw a local security guard, I was enthusiast to tell him the situation. He was on a call, and I didn’t hesitated disturbing him at that point of time. I told him about the dead body to which he promptly replied, that he knew about it and he has also informed the authorities, I was shocked and enquired him that “when they are planning to take out the body out of the water?”, “how much time does it take to bring a dead body out of the water?”. To which he replied that we can’t bring out the body now as it will chock the traffic here. That was a clear escape of that security personnel from his responsibilities or he was ordered to do so.

                                    Above photograph is taken from my mobile phone

The situation was getting murkier; I wanted to involve media, but unfortunately couldn’t contact them. Then I thought of just moving on!!

Again at around 3030 to 4000 hrs I returned to pick up my girl friend and just to quench my anxiety about the situation of the dead body I went to the same spot, and to my surprise the body was still there, but this time it floated near the wall and was turned over, I could see the face of the body. He was a man of around 35 to 40 years of age line with black mustache wearing a brown T-Shirt. That’s all I could observe in him as there were two police personnel watching me. I inquired them about any identification of the body after confirming them that I was the one who first witnessed the body.

The police replied that their particular department was informed very late about the situation and assured me that they will clear things within two hours. After observing so many things in a single day I am really amazed seeing the inefficiency of our police department and other rescue departments.Though there is nothing amazing about it!!

It takes more than 6 long hours to recover a body out of a lake which is floating in water; I doubt whether they have still taken any kind of action over it. Can’t imagine how people can be so irresponsible, how could police be so insensible, how will they come to know whether it is a suicide case or a murder without bringing out the body. If it was a murder case then many evidences must have washed out. This makes me feel that, this is the value of a common man in India. I am ashamed of authorities which take such situations irresponsibly. If it was any of their relative missing or any well known magnet then the work would have done in within minutes. I pity the situation of so called independent India.

The above photographs are taken from my mobile phone.