The Margosa Tree

“Oh! Not the Margosa tree!! No! Anything but that… No!” Naina muttered to herself as she watched uniformed men dig the yard. Unable to hold herself back anymore she ran towards the tree, but was stopped by the police barricade.

“You cannot go there,” the guard said in rough Hindi.

“But the Margosa tree!” She cried and tried to move ahead.

Strong hands pulled Naina back as she tried to cut across the barricade. The impersonality of the police woman’s touch which pulled her back startled Naina for a minute and she gave in to be led back to the house.

Sitting at the kitchen counter, Naina held her head in her hands and tried to clear the buzzing voices in her head. Slumped in the chair, she looked almost painfully thin. Her cheeks were sunk in, her face was lined and wrinkled, and there were dark circles under her eyes. She looked middle aged, but something in her light brown eyes suggested an ageing beyond her years.

“Clearly under stress… She hasn’t said a single intelligible thing since morning…” she could hear the police constable who had brought her into the house speak to another officer.

“I don’t blame her! Imagine living with someone like that for so long. She must have been a child when he brought her here,” the other woman remarked.

“Just look at her. There’s not a single part of her body without scars and bruises! Women’s emancipation in India, my foot!” The constable stomped her sandal clad foot to mark her annoyance.

Naina shut her eyes to stop the voices from banging into her head.

“Has she had something to eat?” A deep voice rang across the room. Turning around Naina saw Ayush Raghav, the Police Commissioner who had earlier let her out of the dark room and made the questions stop. He had quietly walked into the kitchen. A hush fell across the crowded room.

“Chitra, has the doctor come?” His voice rang into silence now.

“No sir, he’s on his way,” the hefty constable quickly replied.

“Hmm,” the Commissioner nodded turning away.

Soon a cup of milky tea and a tutti-frutti bun materialised before Naina. But she refused to touch it.

“The Margosa tree…” She kept muttering to herself.

“Drink it,” said Chitra, the police constable in a kind voice, pointing at the cup.

Her clumsy attempt at kindness disarmed Naina, and she slowly picked up the tea cup. As she felt the warmth of the cup of tea spread through her fingers, Abir Kaul, the assistant commissioner, came towards the counter and seated himself before her.

“Naina, you are now free,” said the young man with a bright smile.

Naina stared back at him blankly. Flustered by the hollowness of her large eyes, Abir quickly hurried through his words. Flipping through a file in his hand, he said,

“Your husband, uh… I mean Mr. Charan and his entire gang have now been arrested. It was a high profile operation, but we have managed to tie all the loose ends. Now Naina, for the charges of sexual harassment and human trafficking against your husband we need your statement. If you co-operate with us, the Human Rights Commission…”

“Will you chop down the Margosa tree?” Naina interrupted Abir’s self absorbed speech.

“The Margosa tree?” Abir looked around him perplexed. Following Naina’s gaze he spotted the tree in the back yard.

“Oh that? Yes, I think so. They are digging the yard for evidence; we have already found some…”

Suddenly Naina rose up from her chair and leant across the counter and said fiercely, her eyes bright, almost hysterical,

“But they can’t kill the tree!! Don’t you understand?” Tears streaming down her face she continued, “You see, it was just a tiny shrub amidst all the rubble in the yard when I first came to this house, 18 years ago. Over the years it grew, untended, uncared for, braving fierce weather.  It bore tiny flowers, fruits, and then there were birds… and…  and music… While all else in this place rotted, the tree… the tree lived. Now you cannot kill it. No, not like this!”

Suddenly exhausted of words, Naina slumped back in to her chair. Abir, shocked by Naina’s catharsis, watched the woman, helpless. He took in her frail figure, her scarred face almost hidden by the pallu of her saree thrown around her head and searched for words to reassure her. As she gasped for breath, Naina felt a firm hand on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw Chitra, the constable. She said in a soft tone, 

“They are about to cut the tree. Maybe you should have a last look,” she gestured to the window. The unexpected kindness in the constable’s eyes once again caught Naina’s attention.

Slowly she stood up and walked towards the window. Looking out, as she had innumerable times before, she saw Margosa tree in the backyard. She saw two hefty men in lungis and singlets stand around it, ready to axe the tree. Naina closed her eyes, unable to bear the sight and stood there waiting to hear the sharp thud of metal against life. None came. Instead, she heard voices. Opening her eyes, she saw the Police Commissioner Ayush Raghav talking heatedly to the officers in the yard. She hurried outside.

“…the least smidgeon of intelligence? This tree must be over 20 years old, its roots would have spread very deep. Do you think you can find evidence from ten years back under it? Dig around the tree!” He addressed the trench men.

Looking around Ayush continued in a quiet tone, “This is a Margosa tree. It purifies the air, soil and water around it. It nurtures and revives life. Imagine, it has braved so many odds, climate change, bleached soils, acid rain and God know what to grow and thrive here. Not one of you here is great enough to destroy this life force.” Then turning to the officer next to him, Ayush began giving orders.

Standing by the back door, Naina watched the men put down their axes and walk away. Overwhelmed by an avalanche of emotions, Naina stood still, feeling her whole body shiver. She wanted to thank the kind officer who had saved the Margosa tree. She wanted to be able to speak, to tell these people about her life of 18 years. She wanted to laugh and then cry. But she could do nothing.

Leaning against the wall for support, she looked up at the sky. She noticed that after a long time, now it was blue.