It is the tale of 1979 when I along with my mother, had gone especially to Srinagar from Jammu in December on the calling of one of my acquaintances, especially for helping me in getting admission to the Jammu Medical College. He was one of the very close relations with my mother from her father’s side. He was a senior School Teacher in National High School Karan Nagar Srinagar and was very popular in had good relations with the then Chief Minister Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah. As it used to be very difficult for a Kashmiri Hindu to get admission in the professional Medical College of the state despite having the merit-the discretional favors to Muslims and the special classes were being used very much those days for the admission to professional colleges in both Engineering and Medical sides....... For further reading connect..... https://bit.ly/3OZin4K

1. Ravi Speaks:
Update on 04.08.2022.
I Was Befooled By My Acquaintance In 1979
It is the tale of 1979 when I along with my mother, had gone especially to Srinagar
from Jammu in December on the calling of one of my acquaintances, especially
for helping me in getting admission to the Jammu Medical College. He was one of
the very close relations with my mother from her father’s side. He was a senior
School Teacher in National High School Karan Nagar Srinagar and was very
popular in having good relations with the then Chief Minister Sheikh Mohammad
Abdullah. As it used to be very difficult for a Kashmiri Hindu to get admission in the
professional Medical College of the state despite having the merit-the
discretional favours to Muslims and the special classes were being used very
much those days for the admission to professional colleges in both Engineering
and Medical sides.

2. Trying Admission The Fools' Way.

3. All Tricks For Admission To Medical College.
This gentleman had assured my mother that once we came to Srinagar, and he
introduced me to the CM there-it would be very easy for me to follow the rest of
the formalities and I would be automatically considered for admission to JMC in
that year’s session. He was very close to the CM, especially because he was a very
strong member/worker of the National Conference Party to which Sheikh Abdullah
belonged. He had even told my mother that he had already mentioned my case
to Sheikh Abdullah’s Secretary and I had to meet the CM at his residence only
once before appearing in the interview for admission to the Medical College. My
grandfather had already cautioned my mother that it would be just an exercise in
futility and this man would be of no significant help-so better not to go all the way
to Srinagar in such a horrible wintertime. Still, my mother was so much sure that
she continued with the plan to go to Srinagar in December.
So, finally, I and my mother landed up in Srinagar one fine evening from Jammu.
That day it was all clear sky and there was a very piercing cold around I had for
the first time experienced such a cold atmosphere since I had never been to
Srinagar in winters earlier that occasion. I was staying with my maternal uncle
there in Jawahar Nagar and the next day I still remember. There was a very heavy

4. snowfall and the whole streets around were all covered with snow. It was for the
first time that I had experienced the snow fall-which was a very pleasant
experience. We had to wait till the whole of the day had already passed. Despite
that, we could not go out of the house the next very day due to continued snowfall
and heavier clouds covering the sky. Anyway, on the second day, I along with my
mother went to National High School, Karan Nagar-where he had told my mother
to come and meet him in the staff room.
Srinagar-Lal Chowk-Those Days In Snow.

5. Srinagar-Lal Chowk-Those Days In Snow.
We reached the next day by around 11.30 AM at the Staffroom of the school and
waited for almost half an hour -since he finished his class-which he was
attending during that time. He received us very happily and attended to us by
offering tea immediately after we met. He discussed with my mother why he had
called us from Jammu. He said that during those seven days; the CM was in
Srinagar at his residence and he had already fixed an appointment with him
through his secretary, who was very close to him. He is a very active member of
the National Conference would introduce myself to the CM and would request a
special favour from him in getting a seat for the Medical College Jammu since I
had been a very good student having good merit even in my earlier classes too.
He further told her that this was to be done immediately since the Interviews
would be held immediately a couple of months later and the students who were
to be selected on the special recommendations, their lists were prepared earlier
to the interviews and the same were to be forwarded to the members of the
Interview team. So, it was decided by him I should be there again the next day at
around 12.30 PM and then he would take me to the CM’s residence. Therefore, that
day I along with my mother came back to Jawahar Nagar-our residence with no
development.

6. My Meeting Place National School Srinagar.
The next day I was very excited that I had to go with him to meet the CM at his
residence and that would be a very great moment for me. I left the residence a bit
earlier and reached the school in Karan Nagar well in advance. I waited till 12.30
PM outside the School premises and finally at the right time entered the school
and met him in the Staff Room. He told me to wait till he finished his last class that
day. I had no other way but to exceed what he had to direct me. So, I waited for
another one hour and it was already 2.00 PM and he came back from his class
and asked me for a cup of tea. I was starving and had to do with just one cup of
tea. He would not take any lunch and he, too, had a cup of tea with me. He again
told me to wait for some more time and then he would take me. He went out of
the Staffroom with the rest of the teachers after the Lunch break was over and did
not come back till 4.00 PM and I was feeling very annoyed and restless because of
his behaviour. But I was helpless and could not say outright anything since I had a
purpose and he was the important person who helped to get my work done.
Finally, once he came back at 4.00 PM, the school had also come to a close and a
lot of students were coming out of the school. He told me to come the next day
again at around 11.30 AM.

7. National Conference Party Of J&K UT.

8. Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah-The Then Chief Minister.
That day I reached back my place at around 5.00 PM and my mother was eagerly
waiting for me to know what exactly had happened. She was very positive and
sure that I would give her some happy news and when I told her the exact
happenings of that day, she too got very depressed and started realising that her
father rightly said that it would be an exercise in futility for us. I too started
realising one fact that this way things would not be happening for a positive
outcome and he was just making fool of us thinking us to be a hopeless lot whom
he could use as a puppet and also boasted high about himself and his links just
to impress upon us.
Anyway, we decided that since he had asked me to come again, the next morning
I would surely go there for the last time and after that, no more such fooling
around by him and we decided that if the next day also the things remained the
same way, then we would move back to Jammu wasting no more time and even
without getting ourselves even more tested and tried as fools.

9. We Proved To Be Traveling Fools.
As the scene unfolded the next day-the same repetition of the earlier day was
there and I had to wait till 2.00 PM first and after taking tea had to again wait till
the school came to closing bells’-time and I had to tell him, I would go back to my
place. He again told me to come back the next day, but this time he said instead
of 11.30 AM I had to meet him at 2.00 PM after the lunch break from school.

10. Finally, we returned to Jammu the following day and after around a week my
mother got the information from him we did it wrong since the next day I would
have met CM-but alas I did not go back again to get befooled once again by him.
Such characters are remembered for their acts for the rest of life and once we
recall the whole scene-we feel cheated and befooled again. But ‘Humans’-much
as they would like to forget and not to get even the thought of such happenings,
still can’t help recall such incidents often.
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