Kashmir Closure

The hype and hoopla over ‘Mission Kashmir’ was brought to formal closure today when Hari Singh Shekhawat distributed keepsake photographs to all those who had gone on the trip earlier this month. With this, memories associated with it, the preparations, journey and most significantly, the highs and lows of those momentous eight days in the Valley would be relegated to Club history. It’s time now to look ahead.
The distribution of photographs met with predictable chaos and confusion as Shekhawat unwittingly opened the packets (marked separately in each individual’s name) and asked for them to be circulated around for all to see. In the melee that followed (pic above) many ended up with multiple prints of the same photo while some were left empty-handed. The wisest one was Santosh Tyagi who made a dash home after collecting her packet, not waiting to open it.
Shekhawat committed another hilarious goof when he was requested to intervene in the ruckus raised by an unruly group (right pic) occupying the enclosure adjacent to the area where we exercise in the Chinese Hut. Everyone was getting distracted by their heated arguments on politics – more so because Bapu Rane was also chipping in with his comments while pretending to exercise.
 We had all expected Shekhawat to restore order by asking those men to shut up. Instead, much to our surprise, Shekhawat engaged them in a lengthy discourse on political ethics, why politicians cannot be trusted, what they say in his village... in effect, adding fuel to fire. Exercises were temporarily suspended as everyone stared at him in utter disbelief.
Finally, Shekhawat returned with a gem of an explanation: “I have made them understand -- apne tarikey se!”