A real story : Is it the society that is at fault? Or the poverty factor?

A Nepali mother in the remote districts of the country gives birth to a son. The whole family rejoices the birth of a new male member in that particular family. Neighbors come to greet the parents. The family enjoys the coming of a new-comer in the family for a few days in series. In doing so perhaps the family members, the parents specially, imagines that their days ahead will all be bright and sunny which is only but very natural.

The new comer comes of age and is admitted in the primary school. Later he joins the secondary school. He then clears the secondary board and the parents then manage his admission in Kathmandu in a School of Law. The boy, say the student from the remote district, does well in the class and upon clearing his Intermediate level of studies in Law succeeds in getting enrolled in the Bachelor level.

Then the unfortunate moment grips this student and this is really painful indeed.

The parents back in the remote district find themselves in a very tight position and become unable to send financial stipend to their son on a regular basis. The student in Kathmandu understands the compulsion of his parents.

The climax: He then gets introduced to a known thief who tries his expertise in Kathmandu’s Thamel area.

The local thief apparently seduces the student who then yields to the formers’ instructions. It was the student’s compulsion that pushed him to this generally considered as an ugly profession. The student knows this fact but then can’t help control his feelings and joins the hands of the ugly man and perhaps makes some money. In the process the student’s studies in Law gets disturbed which is also very natural.

Only recently, the two while trying their luck in Thamel area chased by the police. Luckily, the main man behind the theft is nabbed by the police. The student some how or the other fled and is yet to be apprehended by the security personnel. Sooner or later he will be behind the bars. In effect the student should submit himself to the laws of the land.

Upon interrogation, the real culprit divulges the details of the student: his name, village and the district and perhaps also the college where he studied until the other day.

This is a real story told to this scribe by a Medical doctor at the Bir Hospital who by chance had to attend to the real thief for he was severely beaten by the police. The injury was such that the police even felt the need to bring him to the hospital.

Now I leave the rest up to my valued readers to analyze the event carefully and judge as to who is at fault? The poverty factor? The utter negligence of the powers-that-be in Kathmandu? The politicians who day in day out make lectures on the preservation of the system and the constitution but never find time to address the main issues that is forcing the Nepali youths to turn to acts such as the one mentioned just above? Is it the schooling of the students that is at fault? Or is it that the parents or the teachers did not give proper education on the conduct of moral values? Or is it the student himself that must be held responsible for his own degradation from the normal values? Or is it that the students from the village who have no guardians in Kathmandu get easily seduced by the men of the sort of the thief, now in police custody, and the politicians?

The fact could also be that fortunately I came to know of this event and am sharing it with you all. But there could be several instances happening concurrently in other parts of the country.

Like it or not, this is how the nation’s youths are being pushed to acts that normally the society doesn’t permit. But is it not that the society which assumes the role of a judge in each and every case is also to be held responsible?

Before I conclude this sentimental event, I can’t escape my own responsibility as a journalist who failed miserably in jolting the leaders, the governments and the authorities so that they could address the issues mentioned above. I frankly admit my failure. That’s all.

(I thank the medical practitioner for his kind support in revealing these facts. For sake of the student’s future I have tried to hide the names of the student and the village address of the parents-Upadhyaya).

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