Tussle Continues

Shekhawat's Jaipur Superfast chugs out of the China Hut after the rains subside

Life in the Garden just got a little more interesting as members turn increasingly defiant towards Arun Patil disciplining them. That he is now de facto secretary of Big Laaf seems to have emboldened him at throwing his weight around, especially while conducting the exercises. And nobody is liking this at all.
Today he picked on Yusuf Rassiwala for starting out on an exercise before getting the cue. Yesterday, he demanded Rukhsana Khan change her

Arun Patil (l) gives Dilip Babani some gyan 

place in the China Hut, only to be rebuffed squarely. Ditto with Nahid Khan, who plain ignored him. Shekhawat is of course, Arun's favorite punching bag and it makes no difference to him. Being pulled up for talking, absent-mindedness and laughing out of turn, etc. has become all too common for everyone.
“Arun is keeping us on our toes,” remarked Bijoy Gupta jovially, unable to hold his sarcasm. “Without him there can be no discipline in this Club!”
Fact is nobody takes Arun seriously. Much as he tries to impose himself by riding rough shod, we indulge

Yusuf Rassiwala and Banoo Apa present Khatoon Baig her
long-pending birthday calendar

him out of politeness. We all know he bears no ill-will and that being lonely in life he has no other means to assert himself with authority. In the Garden he finds a suitable platform to affirm his identity.
“See how I have got everyone to wear the cap every single day,” he boasts, refusing to believe that nobody would ever thank him for what he does. Rather than live and let live, he argues that unless you persist with what you think is correct, the world will not improve.
But Khatoon Baig will have nothing of it. Otherwise a withdrawn and painfully shy person, she has become surprisingly aggressive of late, thanks to Arun. She not only back-answers him but protests vehemently, when not in the mood to obey. “Who are you to stop me from saying kissa kursi ka or hai mera dil?” she challenged Arun (ref post of June 29) the other day. The tussle continues.