Some five days back , I was commuting back home from college in a mtc bus.seated in the not so comfortable confines of my window-seat ,absorbed in the buzzing activities of the city..The rapport between the driver and the conductor, evident from the sound of the whistle, the lamenting passengers, smell of sweat and damp, everything caught my unawares when a lady, shabbily dressed with a child about three year old sat next to me..both looked dirty, poverty ridden…the lady must be in her late teens..the child dozed off immediately!,after acquiring the seat next to me..i understood their need for a seat , despite the ‘gender’ division prevalent in the mtc buses of the state.. Atleast, in buses they (ladies) were allotted 60% seats over the males..(Including the long back seat, yeah they are meant for ladies only)..but,generally I ‘ve seen some arrogant females conquering seats meant for the gents also, my blood boils when I see that,especially when I travel after playing ..more when I am in a bad mood!..i grit it out, anyway!...
So,this lady I am talking about, must ‘ve faced difficulties of sorts. And destined to face many. appeared to be cool and undeterred at my presence, at this proximity.. absorbed in some thought staring at some point in the ground..and the child sleeping sweetly. The child hung her head,twisted turned , and at this point , our lady turned brutal, she caught a good lump of the child’s hair and disturbed its roots and scalp fiercely by pulling! At a moment, I thought her neck was ripped off her body!..i was shocked, the child let out a deafening cry!..i realized that, she did that to make the child to be awake.and.again the child hung her head and attempted to rest, again a pull!!.. This time accompanied with a slap! ..i felt like yelling at the lady!..the child again tried a sleep, again a fatal treatment!..i badly wanted to abandon the seat and stand in some corner of the bus, since it was not welcoming sight .unfortunately, the bus was jampacked!..luckily I had a chance to glance at the lady , at that brief moment I conveyed my thoughts….’Why the hell are u treating your child like this”.?? As if she got what I tried say suddenly kept the child between us and laid the child on my lap and she stood and continued to gaze at the point in the ground. now the child, sleeping on my side and I promised the child a disturbance-free nap. After some 20 mins, the child was shook to sanity by a slap on the head!..oh my god!..the stop has come!..when I was about to get down, after giving a disgusted look at the female, i felt a tap on my shoulder,turned and saw that lady thrusting me my cap , which I’d left in the seat by mistake..and she shed one congenial smile, I didn’t !.. I heard people talking about child abuse and all that! And I just saw it live.. I failed to stop it, perhaps I should‘ve stole that one brief moment