GHOSTS BANE DOST

In eight years, crime rate in Sanand has fallen by 50 per cent. Installing tombstones of warriors who had laid down their lives protecting their village led to drop in crime rate, say ‘humble’ policemen

DILIP PATEL

In the past eight years, the crime rate in Sanand has dropped by half. Hold on. Don’t applaud the cops just yet. The real crime-fighters are some friendly ghosts. And before you start slamming us, this is what the cops themselves claim.
The story dates back to July 29, 1988 when the Sanand police seized a truck smuggling antique goods being out of Rethal village. They had been tipped off by Pravinsinh Vaghela, a resident of Rethal, who later identified the goods that had been stolen. Among the booty were nine tombstones almost 200 to 300 years old. According to Pravinsinh, these tombstones belonged to men who had laid down their lives trying to keep the village safe from dacoits and pillagers.

GRAVE ERROR

THE STONES were dumped in the station’s backyard. In 2003, the crime rate in Sanand began shooting up. Two policemen from the station got suspended.
The constables and PSI felt the ill-luck was being brought about by the disrespect shown towards the tombstones. They restored the tombstones and conducted a havan. Lo and behold, the situation began to improve.

IDOL WORSHIP

AND NO less than the police inspector backs this claim with figures. Inspector M M Jhala, said, “The then inspector N J Jhala got the tombstones installed at one spot and got a havan done to appease the offended spirits. Since then, every morning, ASI Vishalsinh Vaghela conducts pooja and applies tilak on the idols.
“The crime rate has dropped by half in the past 7-8 years. In 2001-02, we registered seven loots in Sanand. In 2008-09, there were just two. The murder rate dropped from six in 2001-02 to three in 2008-09. No case of rape has been registered in the past two years.”
He adds, “The staff here feels that since the stones have been installed here, the atmosphere has filled with positive vibes.”

PROOF POSITIVE?

MEANWHILE, Rethal villagers are trying to retrieve the tombstones, but to no avail. Said Pravinsinh, “The case ran in court for 14 years. Till then, the police had custody of the antiques. To retrieve it, we need to furnish proof that the tombstones belonged to our village.
We also need to give a bill copy. But the tombstones were not bought.
After so many years, how do we prove that they belonged to our village? As we do not have the necessary documents, we can’t claim the tombstones.”

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OTHER SPIRITED STORIES






COPS RUN SCARED OF GHOST

The Ramol police station,referred to by villagers as bhoot thana, was set up on a rented premises on October 5, 2007.The Ramol police claimed a ghost, believed to be a woman poltergeist, used to overturn furniture and shove cops working in the night shift at the police station.Some police officials even complained they felt someone was strangling them.The ghost was “contained by a tantrik” a few days before Diwali in 2008.‘Ghost trouble’ at the police station has ended, but cops continue to be a bit leery of the premises.

HAVAN TO TACKLE SPIRITS

Policemen living at Danilimda quarters opposite Ganjshouda Kabrastan faced a ‘grave’ problem.Their families believed the houses were built on part of the graveyard, bringing bad luck to residents.The quarters were built four years ago.However,the families shifted here only a couple of years ago.The presence of the graveyard opposite the houses fuelled a lot of rumours which gained strength after the death of two people.To put all rumours as well as spirits, if any, to rest, the cops conducted a havan and a urs on October 2, 2009.

KALIGAM OUTPOST’S CLOSED

A police outpost in Kaligam near Ranip was closed about four years back after a constable apparently spotted a ghost. Sources in the Sabarmati police station, which managed the outpost, say the constable — Joravsinh — left the outpost claiming that he was slapped by a ghost.They say eventually all officials of the outpost stopped working there.A senior official at the Sabarmati police station said that outpost was closed following reports of “suspicious activity”.

ARMY’S GHOSTLY LEGEND

It is not just local policemen who harbour superstitious beliefs.The Indian Army has its own dear ghost: Harbhajan Singh of the Dogra Regiment. Harbhajan Singh drowned in a glacier during the 1962 Sino-Indian War. His body was found three days later and cremated with full military honours. It was said Harbhajan led the search party to his body, and later, through a dream, instructed one of his colleagues to build and maintain a shrine after him.A camp bed is kept for him and his boots are polished and uniform kept ready every night.The sheets are reportedly crumpled every morning and boots muddy by evening.The soldier continues to draw a salary and takes his annual leave. Every year on September 14, a jeep departs with his personal belongings to the nearest railway station, New Jalpaiguri, where it is then sent by train to the village of Kuka, in Kapurthala district in Punjab.Presently the late soldier is treated as honorary captain.