My posting at SBI Bhind Branch as
Manager Personal Banking had been fairly long (a full 4 years from 1991 to 1995)
and it has given me varied experiences. That is the longest duration I worked
at any single place in the Bank. I am writing down my experiences in various
places at random and in the process wrote this small narration. Hope some of
you at least would find it interesting as the experience is somewhat different
from what we tend to have over here.
Bhind town is the headquarters of
Bhind district and had a population of 110,000 as per 1991 census. However I
have seen that currently the population of Bhind is over 2 lacs.
Bhind branch had about 30 staff in
all, of which about 12 in my division. While the Personal Banking Division
which I headed and the Cash Department were downstairs, the Agriculture Banking
Division headed by Hemraj was upstairs.
That was my first assignment as the
Manager of the Division. It was a big division and we had 120 savings ledgers
in all. 2500 pensioners and 600 school teachers drew their pensions and
salaries each month from there. The division always had a big rush all the time.
All the transactions were manual at that time and people had to be personally
present at the branch to withdraw the money as no ATM’s were there. To top it
everything was manual excluding the lists of pensioners which we got done from
outside.
Ours is the only commercial bank
branch at Bhind apart from State Bank of Indore and probably Central Bank of
India and Punjab National Bank.
The very first impression I had of
Bhind is that so many people carried guns which are licensed. So many guns
everywhere. I found that some people carried guns even while travelling on a
bicycle. Bhind and the surrounding areas had many Thakurs, and for them to
possess a gun is symbol of prestige. There were so many tractors as well
because that was also looked as a symbol of prestige by the people. At that
time, I have never seen that many tractors anywhere else in MP or for that
matter in any other state which I had visited except for Punjab. Our branch
alone has financed over 200 tractors and that was in 1991.
I want to give you an idea of the
area. Once, the belt of Bhind, Morena
and Mainpuri was famous for dacoits. Since the British times dacoits
abounded the Chambal. Although it was said that feudal mindset and exploitation
led to dacoity, there is no proof for this, as most of the dacoit gangs have
come from a higher caste backgrounds who were economically well off. One of the
famous dacoits of the Chambal area is Gabbar Singh on whom the film Sholay was
made. Gabbar Singh had the odious the distinction of cutting away the noses on
113 people. Another famous dacoit Malkhan Singh surrendered at Bhind in 1982.
Then Phoolan Devi and Man Singh surrendered at Bhind in 1983.
Bhind district has 29000 licensed
weapons, and the adjoining district of Morena 21000, when the number of
licensed guns in the entire Bihar state is only 50000. Both Bhind and Morena
are the heart of Chambal Valley and part of the Chambal dacoit belt. The nearby
Chambal ravines had many dacoits once. The ravines started immediately after
Bhind and Chambal river was just 14 Km from Bhind and if one crosses that one
enters into Etawah (Mulayam Singh Yadav’s hometown) from UP which is about 38
km from Bhind.
The ASP of Bhind Sushovan Banerjee
(He is currently one of the Additional Director Generals of Police for MP) was
my customer. He told me that Bhind
district had big dacoit gangs at the time of Phoolan Devi and earllier, and the
police were no match for them at that time because the gangs were equipped with
automatic weapons (Phoolan Devi Carried a Mauser gun) and had many members while the Police carried
303 rifles. He also told me that all the big dacoit gangs have been eliminated
now and only small gangs of 4-5 people operate and they were no match to the
police.
I asked him as to how he finds his
job. His remark was the IPS label appears glamorous but only the insiders knew
what their position is. Probably there are lots of internal pressures which the
public would not be aware of. He told me that the posting at Bhind was good for
his career. I asked him how that is so, and he tells me that he has encountered
17 dacoits and that has gone into his service record. Haha some service record
that.
The branch was then headed by Chief
Manager Mr T.C.Jain who was a Trainee Officer of 1978 batch. He was lame in one
leg and walked with a stoop. The Manager Agricultural Banking Division was
Shuvinder Hemraj who was a Probationer of 1981 batch which is one batch senior
to me. I did not know Hemraj prior to that
and got introduced to him there. Nirmal Singh who was a 1980 batch
probationer was a Deputy Manager to Hemraj. The accountant for the branch was
S.K.Gurnani.
Since I was posted at Bhind for a
long duration of 4 years, a lot of incidents happened. Maybe I cannot remember
all of them now because it is too distant in the past, but there are some which
are simply unforgettable and I will narrate them now.
The very first incident that comes to
mind is that of a shootout because that is something absolutely out of ordinary
for us South Indians. As already narrated earlier, when we initially came to
Bhind there was no hotel where a family can go and have lunch or dinner.
Bhind was a district headquarters but
it lacked such facilities. Also because of its aggressive culture perhaps
people thought such a hotel would not be able to run properly. After about 1
year after our arrival at Bhind, one guy called Amar Singh Bhadoria who owned a
Gymnasium at Bhind, and had many sishyas set up such a Restaurant named
“Mayura”. His elder brother was also the Sub Registrar of Bhind and he comes
from an influential Thakur family.
So me and my wife had an opportunity
to go and have lunch and dinner there now and then. We were too happy about it
and utilized the services of the hotel often. Whenever we visited the hotel
Amar Singh Bhadoria cordially welcomed us and it went on like that for about a
year. The hotel is quite near to my place and is approached by a side road
branching off from the main road to the left.
One day in the morning I came to know
that a shooting incident took place at “Mayura” and a young waiter aged about
19 brought in by Amar Singh from Gwalior was shot dead. I was shocked and
immediately visited his hotel in order to enquire about the happening.
Since a murder has taken place there
the previous day, I thought that there would be police present there. But the
scene that presented itself to me was simply stunning. Till that time I saw
such scenes only in the movies. Not a single policeman was present at the site,
but I found about 20 men holding guns with their shoulders adorned with
flashing cartridge belts. Most of them were tall with beards and looked
sinister and were like soldiers ready for war.
It was a sight straight out of a
Western movie. Amar Singh is nowhere to be seen. The scene shook me and I did
not know who those men were, or why they were there. Since I arrived there I
had no choice, so I just went to one of the guys and told him that I wanted to
meet Amar Singh. That guy went in, and out came Amar Singh to my relief. I asked
him as to what was the matter. Amar Singh blurted out “ Saab ladayi hogaya tha.
Par jobhi ho, ye hotel to kisi bhi halat me chalega hi aur band nahi hogi” then
he said “ Jo hua acha hua, sala dubara is raste se gujar nahi payega”. Probably
he assumed that I knew everything about the incident. I did not want to press
him any further in that condition, agreed with him and left the place.
Later that day in the Bank I came to
know what has actually happened. This incident requires a background to
understand it. Behind it was a notorious goonda named Pappu Sharma. This guy
used to collect hafta from the shops as they show in movies. Once he was caught
by the police and was produced in the court. While the judge was trying his
case, he jumped out of the witness box, beat up the judge and ran away. He was
caught thereafter and was jailed, but another judge granted him bail. That guy
used to roam around with his chelas in Bhind collecting hafta.
Amar Singh was very strict about not
allowing liquor in his hotel because he meant that the hotel should be used by
families along with other citizens. That day at about 9.30 PM the hotel was
about to be closed when Pappu Sharma arrived with 4 other guys. Since Amar
Singh knew (Of course all locals of Bhind knew him) who Pappu Sharma was he let
the hotel remain open and got them served.
However, after sometime some
difference came up between Pappu Sharma and Amar Singh. What exactly it was no
one knows, but it was highly likely that it is regarding consumption of liquor.
In the process Pappu Sharma exclaimed “Tumhara hotel kaise chalega dekhloonga”.
Now Rajput guys are short tempered and take offence easily, and in the process
they act first and think later. Amar Singh took it as a challenge to himself
and said “Theek hai dekhlenge”. Pappu Sharma then left the place in a foul
mood.
Amar Singh knew that he would come
back with more men and arms. He stationed 2 of his men on the terrace of the
hotel with guns and stationed another 2 men inside the hotel again with guns.
As expected Pappu Sharma reappeared
in about 30 minutes with about a dozen guys with half of them armed. Pappu
Sharmas group knew that Amar Singh is also a powerful guy in the area and his
gymnasium had many students in Bhind. So Pappu Sharma’s group was trying to
negotiate for a truce.
However, as the group is
uncoordinated, a guy from the back shouted some abuse and the firing started.
About 20 rounds of fire was exchanged. Amar Singh’s men were firing under cover
while Pappu Sharma’s men were on the road exposed. After the exchange Pappu
Sharma himself got injured as buckshot hit him on the forearm and his skin
right up till his forearm joint was ripped open. He and his men finally ran
away leaving their chappals and also some scooters. After the shootout was
over, Amar Singh’s men found a waiter aged 19 lying dead on the floor of the
hotel. That guy was brought in by Amar Singh from Gwalior just a few months
back. The waiter became too inquisitive at the time when the gunfight was going
on ad opened the door slightly to see what was happening. He was caught in the
crossfire and died but no one noticed that till the fight was over.
The men I found next morning were
stationed there by Amar Singh just in case, if by any chance Pappu Sharma
mounts another attack on the hotel during daytime.
Amar Singh continued to run the
hotel. Now, which family would visit a hotel where a murder has taken place? On
top of that he had a doorman with a semi automatic rifle slung on his shoulder
and the cashier had another semi automatic lest the hotel gets attacked again.
The hotel then looked right out of a western movie or perhaps even worse
because in western movies there are no doormen holding guns.
Now, I relate another incident that
happened earlier to this but is linked to it. Since Bhind had no other means of
recreation myself, Hemraj, Nirmal Singh and Dr Jain used to meet at each ones
residence every Saturday and had dinner. That Saturday the dinner was supposed
to be at Dr Jain’s residence. By the time I reached the Doctors place Hemraj
and his wife have already reached there but not Nirmal Singh. I could see that
the Doctor and his wife’s face are ashen and they were unable to speak
anything. I then asked Hemraj as to what the matter was. He told me that some
time before that Pappu Sharma and his chelas arrived at the Doctors place and
threatened him of dire consequences if he does not take one nurse back. Pappu
Sharma told the Doctor neither you nor your nursing home would exist if you do
not take that nurse back and I will throw you and all your equipment on to the
road.
The story was, previous to that there
was a nurse working for the Doctor whom he removed because she was incompetent.
That time the doctor just had a clinic. Later he borrowed some money from the
bank and set up a small nursing home. Now that nurse wanted to come back but
the Doctor was just not willing. Now that nurse knew Pappu Sharma and so she
sought his help and Pappu Sharma’s arrival at the Doctors house was a
consequence of that.
I told the Doctor, are Jain sab what
is there in that, you just make a complaint to the police. I still remember his
reply very clearly. He said “Are sab woh to hum ko road par marega”. He felt he
had no choice and with great reluctance he finally took the nurse back.
Now when this shootout occurred and Pappu
Sharma got hurt and ran away Dr Jain was the most happiest of all in Bhind.
Since Pappu Sharma lost face after the incident and cannot possibly threaten
him again, so he removed that Nurse from the job after the incident.
But it is amazing to see in that town
that none can remain safe and anyone can be threatened. Luckily, we lived in a
place called Bhuta Kothi which had a huge compound around which a number of
houses were located all owned by the Bhutas. They were tenanted by a number of
people apart from the Bhutas who stayed there. We tenanted the ground floor of
the main Kothi which had about 2 large bedrooms and 2 other rooms plus the
drawing room. It is large in area but had no ventilation at all. Although there
were windows at the front the windows at the back opened on to a narrow dingy
alley which had drainage sewers. So the back windows although present could be
opened at all and therefore the house has no chance for cross ventilation. The
open area in front of the house was however, excellent. It was cemented and had
a badminton court right in front of our house. I played badminton for many a
day with the 2 young Bhutas and others.
There is one thing I liked about the
people of Bhind. They are as straight as an arrow. If they did not like you
they would tell you on your face. Scheming rarely happens among them. Of course
like everywhere there would always be some exceptions there too.
The bank has given me a number of
different type of experiences that added to the thrill of life and this incident
is just but one of them.
