The Naked Ghost

Iam Draupadi and I am naked. No Krishna came when I called. I took all the gods from the kitchen shrine and burnt them. Now there are no Gods. I walked to the police chowki. The policeman on duty outside told me I could not go in, I was naked.

I am already dead I told the policeman. What does it matter to the dead if they are clothed or naked? He spat at me and told me he would beat me if I dared try to go before the Officer like that. I laughed at him. You don’t understand, I said. I am already dead. What will your beating do to me?

The Officer was coming out of the police station. The policeman pushed me aside and stood in front of me and saluted. But I crawled out from behind him and grabbed the Officer’s leg. Justice! I cried, Justice for the dead!

The Officer was scared. He took his gun and pointed it at me. I said to him—I am dead. Shame killed me. There is noth-ing left. What you see is a ghost. What will you do to a ghost? Take your gun and shoot me now, Babu. It makes no differ-ence.

The policeman began to hit me, but the Officer stopped him. A crowd had collected and he was afraid that something might happen that would be in the papers. Babus are always afraid of things written down. A man from the crowd shouted that he knew me. I was a thief.

I took half a pitcher of water, I said. Does water have the owner’s name on it? Does all the water in this land belong only to the rich? Are all the poor to die of thirst if they can’t buy it?

They paraded me, I told the Officer. They stripped me and paraded me for taking the water. Half a pitcher. For my hus-band who was sick and screaming that he must have water or he would die.

I have broken my bangles. Even the black thread I wore with a red bead on it for a mangalsutra I have taken off. They stripped me and paraded me and the shame killed my hus-band. He dragged himself off his bed—a man who could not walk—and he went to the well and jumped in.

Then they cursed me and beat me saying that the well was useless now for everyone. They beat a woman who had just been widowed. For half a pitcher of water.

My husband is dead. He has all the water he will ever need now. And I am dead too. Justice! Punish those who killed us. Justice!

Someone from the crowd shouted that the Officer should write it in the station diary. But the Officer kicked me so hard I had to let go and went quickly inside the station.

I will not leave I shouted after him. I will sit here till this corpse has rotted into dust. Write it in your diary! Write that Draupadi was stripped naked. Write that her husband died. Write that it was all for a few mouthfuls of water.

I sit in the dust outside. The police has tried to make me go. They tried to throw a shawl over me but I ripped it to pieces. They even tried to beat me, but the crowd began to get angry. I sit in the dust and I wait for justice. I am a ghost now so I have no fear or shame. I sit outside on the road and look everyone in the face.

Someone from the crowd brought me a cupful of water.