The Vivekean Times

( I present before you once again that lovely poem I wrote for Valentine's Day. I had composed it literally overnight for the Bandra Buzz, our local newspaper. ) Tears streamed down his face again As Valentine’s Day approached; For on that day a year ago David’s heart had been crushed. His Valentine had ditched him then And mated with his foe; It had taken him a really long time To recover from this blow. So, David vowed to shun this day But Fate had other plans, For he consented to a Blind Date theme: A dinner and a dance. And there she was in front of him A damsel blessed with grace; ‘Twas her smile our hero loved the best It beautified her face. They strolled out together  arm in arm, Two strangers so in love; He whispered sweet nothings to her Then presented a clay dove. “Take this bird and remember me,”  David told his Valentine; “For I shall be forever yours, And, my dear, you shall be mine.”

Ejaz and I met in a secluded area on Friday night. We were discussing possible courses of action when the sound of light footsteps interrupted us. Ejaz looked at me in silence and motioned for us to remain quiet. Suddenly the silhouettes of two men became visible in the darkness. ‘Who’s there?’ I queried. ‘It’s me, Akbar Bugto,’ whispered a voice. ‘And I have Omar Sheikh with me.’ ‘We know exactly what you have been up to,’ said another voice. There was a long spell of silence as Ejaz and I pondered the meaning of these words. Akbar Bugto was one of the support staff who hailed from Baluchistan. He was a handy man who worked at this camp in multiple roles including that of an electrician and a gardener. He was the most visible person on this campus. Omar Sheikh, the Kashmiri software engineer and main communications expert, on the other hand, was usually confined to the control room or the communications centre near the officers’ quarters. ‘What are you talking about?...