SOTTO VOCE: Return of Fear

During the 80s, when my brother was just a little over two years old, my mother would struggle every day to put him to sleep. She resorted to various means but none would work with my playful brother for whom sleep was the greatest enemy. When all else failed, she would take recourse by saying: "Go to sleep, else CRPF men carrying guns will come and take you away".
My brother was unaware who these men were, but these words scared him, just like most residents of the Darjeeling hills, when the Gorkhaland demand was at its peak. How can one forget the days when CRPF battalions carrying arms would move to every nook and corner of the town and villages? I was a student then. Going to school was a problem; regular classes were a rarity as bandhs would be called at the drop of a hat.
Activists would stop us on the way, ask us to return home or the CRPF would ask strange questions about the agitation. They would bundle men and women into vehicles, slap and torture them mercilessly. Despite fear, loss of life, loved ones, property, dignity and youth, the hill people were ready to sacrifice their dreams. With the passage of time, people moved on, hoping and praying for a better future for them as well as for the next generation.
Recently, the politics of bandhs returned to Darjeeling with a vengeance. Those khukris, which were locked up after the agitation, came out and activists brandished them again, thus taking the hills back to those terrible days. There has been the return of fear of the 80s. In protest against the bandhs, a civilian movement was formed demanding not to turn Darjeeling into a battlefield again. The message was clear - change for the better is necessary but not at the cost of loved ones or by diluting peace. A few days ago, a friend called up from Darjeeling to say his wife gave birth to a baby boy.
Although he was on cloud nine, deep inside, the fear of political turmoil and its consequences had taken root again. In a quivering voice, he said, "I fear for my child. My only prayer from now on is that he doesn’t get to witness those turbulent days of yesteryears. But who knows what cards fate will deal?"