Majid Master takes his Masters

Kolkata: Most of the 298 other students mistook the elderly gentleman, dressed in a crisp white kurta and dhoti, for an invigilator or examiner as they walked into the IGNOU Study Centre at Rajabazar on Wednesday morning. They were stumped, however, when he left his bag outside the examination hall and took his designated seat as an examinee.
None knew that the 72-year-old taking the Masters exam in British Poetry was Md Majid Ali, better known as Majid Master.
The former 'uncrowned monarch' of Sashan, North 24-Parganas, Majid is an accused in at least a dozen cases, including murder. He is now out on bail and will have to appear in court on Thursday when three of the matters will be heard. Driven out of Sashan after the Trinamool Congress came to power, he now lives in a rented house in Barasat's Kazipara and claims that he hasn't visited a CPM office in the last five years. But Trinamool lodged a police complaint against him on April 18 accusing him of hurling bombs to scare voters.
"I have been studying during the elections. I am no longer interested in politics. It hurts to sever all ties with CPM and live like a refugee away from my home. But there isn't any other option. In December 2015, I appeared for the British Drama and British Novel examination. I failed to pass British Novel and will reappear this year. I will also sit for Aspects of English," Majid said.
Samir Goswami, assistant co-ordinator of the centre, said that Majid appeared quite serious. "He didn't sound too happy with the situation around when I spoke to him. This was quite a surprise for most of us. We were more used to hearing of Majid Master as a terror in Sashan," he said.
His granddaughter, a first-year student, had insisted on accompanying him to the examination centre, but Majid wouldn't allow this.
"The last time I was accompanied by anybody to an examination centre was in 1950. I was then in Class VI and my father had taken me to Gandhi School in Barasat for a scholarship examination. In our family, students aren't accompanied to examination halls by parents carrying water-bottles and food," he said, while walking towards Sealdah station. Once there, he ran towards a local train that had just started and jumped in to a compartment.