Atonement for sins

Preface

This is my first attempt at writing a short story. I hope this turns out to be good and becomes the first of many more to come. There was a lull in my blogging due to the attack of "Bell's Palsy" I suffered in January after which I have been on a physiotherapy treatment since the last six months. I was asked to lay off all screens and it is only since April 1st this year I am back to my cellphone and laptop. It has been a frustrating six months as  I am being egged on by many of my blog followers to start blogging again and hence this attempt.

This blog is dedicated to all doctors in general who are doing the noble job of healing the sick and one doctor in particular who is the one who asked me not to stop my blogging and continue to do  it. I am indebted to her for the selfless service provided to me.

The recent attack on a junior doctor in Kolkatta inspired me to this story. This is purely fiction and is not based on a any true incident. Any resemblance to an incident or names used in this story is purely coincidental.

I want all my followers to wish me "Good Luck" in my endeavor and give me your honest views and comments. It is now in your hands  to make or break a budding short story writer.

Here follows the story.......

The main characters in this story are as follows

Satyajit - A very influential politician who rose from the ranks. Was a firebrand goonda in his earlier days and has now mellowed in to a repenting old man (approaching 70 years of age) trying to undo the wrongs he did (or was instrumental in doing) in his earlier days.

Nikita - Satyajit's daughter and the apple of his eye. Twenty six years old and a well qualified doctor who has been selected to receive a gold medal from the President of India for meritorious services to the poor and needy. She is in-charge of a hospital in Kolkatta. The hospital has been built by her politician father Satyajit.

Sushmita - A doctor in her early fifties who suffered in her earlier years because of Satyajit's misdeeds. Her only aim in life is to make her only son Biswajit in to a successful politician and take revenge on Satyajit by defeating him in the forthcoming elections.

Biswajit - An up and coming young politician who has just entered the thirties. He has fallen in love with Nikita Satayjit's daughter.

Satyajit was getting ready to go to the City’s Biggest charity hospital where his daughter was to receive an award for exemplary work done in the field of medicine providing services to the poor and needy. The President of India was to handover the award in the presence of many dignitaries. Satyajit was proud of his daughter as any father would be.

His mind went back twenty six years to the day his daughter was born and he lost his son and wife on the same day. Let us go back twenty six years down memory lane….

Chapter I

Satyajit was in a dilemma. Two important events were happening in his life on the same day. He had just admitted his wife to the Government Hospital for her first delivery and the political leader of the party where Satyajit was an important upcoming member was visiting the city of Kolkatta on the same day. He was confused. He had to be there at both the places at the same time and he did not know which to give priority.

He went and talked to the doctor who was in charge of the ward where his wife was admitted and asked her opinion. Dr Sushmita told him that the delivery will take some time and now that he had admitted her he can come after 6-7 hours. Satyajit heaved a sigh of relief. He could easily finish off meeting his political leader and explain his position and excuse himself and be back in time for his wife’s delivery.

He went ahead, met his leader and attended to his duties of receiving the leader. The leader was impressed with Satyajit. He confided that he was being considered for a ticket to stand in the forthcoming elections. Satyajit explained his position to his leader and asked permission to be excused to leave so that he could go to the hospital. The leader chided him and told him he should not have neglected his wife to come and meet him. He asked Satyajit to leave immediately to be with his beloved wife when she needs him the most.

In the meanwhile at the hospital things were happening fast. Satyajit’s wife delivered twins , a boy and a girl but developed post natal complications. Both Satyajit’s wife and the male child were in danger and Dr. Sushmita had her hands full. She was a junior doctor and had little experience in such matters. To add to her woes the senior doctor in charge of gynaechology was on long leave. Dr. Sushmita tried to contact Satyajit to update him on the news but was unable to contact him since he was very busy with his political duties, She left a message for him to contact her immediately adding that it was urgent. There was a group of youngsters from Satayajit’s political party who had been stationed by him to take care of any emergencies while he was away attending to his leader. It was the leader of this group whom Dr Sushmita contacted to pass on the urgent message to Satayajit. Now this young man was by nature a very nasty person and took pride in harassing young ladies who he came across. He saw that Dr. Sushmita was a pretty young thing. He threatened her that if anything happened to his boss’s wife the hospital will have to pay a heavy price.

In addition to being nervous Dr. Sushmita was now afraid. A crucial medicine required was not available in ready stock and she had to order from the hospital store. The store keeper said it wil take minimum one day for the stock to be replenished.

The situation worsened. Dr. Sushmita was alone in the hospital since heavy rains had disrupted the city’s normal life and her assistants have not turned up due to disruption of traffic. As the day progressed the condition of Satyajit’s wife turned bad due to non availability of medicine. The newborn baby boy was deprived of mother’s milk and was crying himslef hoarse with hunger. If the doctor attended to the mother the child would suffer and vice versa. Finally she took a bold decision to first save the mother for the sake of the other twin and take a chance with the life of the male twin. Dr. Sushmita tried her best but fate seemed to have ordained what was to happen.

Satyajit’s wife breathed her last in spite of the doctor’s valiant effort to save her. Soon the ailing child followed the mother and breathed the last of his short life. Satyajit was also getting late reaching the hospital due to the heavy rains and the traffic woes. The news reached Satyajit’s group of men who were stationed at the hospital. Their leader was furious and wanted to teach a lesson to the helpless Doctor who had tried her best valiantly. The group leader decided to take the law in to his hand. He hunted down the doctor and was soon carrying out his threat. The furious followers thrashed the doctor mercilessly and also took advantage of her by physically molesting her. By the time the police were informed and they reached the hospital everything was over. The doctor was unconscious and the hospital furniture was damaged because of the mob running amuck due to the death of their beloved leader’s kin.

Satyajit reached the hospital and was dismayed to learn about his wife and kids death and the dark deeds of his followers. He made immediate arrangements to shift the surviving girl child to another private hospital. The leader of the mob was arrested and sent to jail.

Dr. Sushmita met Satyajit and appraised him of the facts about the non availability of medicines and proper assistants and tried to explain about her helplessness. Satyajit though understood her predicament had to support his followers with the aim to further his dreams of being a politician. He refused to help her.

Next day the hospital staff went on a lightning strike to protest the attack on the attack on their valiant colleague, The staff demanded police protection against such future attacks before they returned to work. Politicians were taking advantage of the situation. The ruling party was for taking action against the doctor for negligence in her duties whereas the opposition was with the doctors and supported the strike. The main sufferers were the general public who were being deprived of medical attention due to the strike for no fault of theirs. A political leader’s supporters taking law in to their hand and attacking a public service doctor was untenable but who cares?

The media took advantage of the situation with TV channels holding opinion polls, debates for against both sides with the persons interviewed basking in their hour of glory.

The doctors strike was called of after a week of national support to the doctors with the ruling party ultimately agreeing to providing protection to the government hospital doctors when the doctors resumed work.

Poor Dr. Sushmita who was widowed only last year due to her husband’s death in a road accident was suspended and later sacked from her job for being the cause of all the turmoil. She moved to a smaller city with her three year old son Biswajit and took up a job with a small nursing home. She however made a resolution to bring up her son to be a future politician, her ultimate aim was to bring Stayajit to his knees by defeating him.

Chapter II

Five years passed by . Satyajit had by now risen in ranks and his political party was now ruling the city. Satyajit was the State health minister. He understood the difficulty of the Government doctors. He wanted to find out about Dr. Sushmita and apologise to her about his helplessness earlier and atone for his sins. He was unable to find her whereabouts and learned about her suspension and subsequent termination. He spread word with his followers to locate her and bring her before him. He was determined about undoing his wrongs. He wanted to build a charitable hospital in the city for the poor and  needy

Ten more years passed by. Nikita his surviving daughter was by now a charming fifteen year old. He was glad to learn that she was a very bright child who was extremely good in her studies, He made a vow to make his daughter into a doctor and build a charitable hospital in memory of his wife and son who expired in an unfortunate incident years ago.

At last he was able to trace Dr. Sushmita to a nearby small city. He found out that she was in-charge of a small nursing home and had a handsome young eighteen year old boy. Satyajit went and met her and apologised to her on his past misdeed of not helping her when she needed it most. She was furious and told him about her determination to finish him off as a politician. Satyajit who by now was a more matured person smiled at her and told her she need not do that. In fact he promised that he will take her son under his wing and help in making him a good political leader. In any case he missed having a son he told her. Dr. Sushmita was adamant. She refused point blank. She admonished him and threw him out of her house. Satyajit was not aperson to give up. He decided to keep tabs on her and the young Biswajit and help her anonymously.

Chapter III

Ten more years passed by. Nikita was a now Dr. Nikiita having passed out with flying colours in her MBBS. She was now doing her MD.

Her father Satyajit was now the chief minister and was busy giving finishing touches to the plans of his dream hospital in memory of his beloved wife and son. Satyajit had been successful in making his daughter a doctor. He had also succeeded in bringing Biswajit (who was by now a budding politician having passed out in Political Science) under his wing (unknown to him about his past relation with his mother). 

Biswajit was by now a regular visitor to his mentor Satyajit’s house. When he first Satyajits daughter Nikiita it was love at first sight for him. He was hopelessly in love with her and was waiting for an opportunity to express his feelings to her and her father. He somehow kept his mother out of his little secret telling himself that he will bring her in to the picture at an appropriate time. He was aware that his mother did not approve of Satyajit and had not confided in her about his being his protege.

Let us cut the long story short and come back to the present.

Chapter IV

It was a further two years later that we come to the present. In the meantime the following things have happened. Dr. Nikiita has passed he MD and having rendered meritorious and selfless service to the poor and needy has been selected to be the recipient of the President’s Gold medal.

The hospital building is ready with the help of the chief minister’s support and will be inaugurated by no less a person than the President himself. 

Biswajit has managed to express his love to Dr. Nikita who was also secretly admiring his handsome presence in her house. Satyajit wholeheartedly approves the match and wants to announce his successor in Biswajit to the world at large. Dr, Sushmita however is blissfully unaware of all these developments is and busy with her nursing home duties.

The function  of the gold medal presentation goes off smoothly. The president then formally declares open the multi speciality hospital.

Satyajit takes this opportunity to declare Biswajit as his chosen successor.

Everybody all around is happy. But not Dr. Sushmita. She is furious with he son for joining hands with Satyajit her sworn enemy. How can she now fulfill her vow of defeating Satyajit.

Both Satyajit and Biswajit succeed in convincing Dr. Sushmita not to carry venom and revenge in her mind. Whatever happened in the past was not intentional and Stayajit had already set things right by educating Dr. Nikita as a doctor and building a hospital for the poor and needy.

Biswajit also told her about his love for Dr. Nikita and his plans of marrying her with the approval of both Dr. Sushmita and Satyajit.

Finally Dr. Sushmita relents and in any case does not want to go against Biswajit's love.

There is happiness all around and my story comes to an end.