Soulful Ramblings

A final year medical student of Manipal University hailing from Kerala was abducted on June 20, near MCOPS building, by three persons who came in an autorickshaw and later gang-raped her. The medical student, who had suffered a fracture in her leg received treatment at the Kasturba Hospital in Manipal and was discharged on July 4. This incident triggered massive protests by commoners, students and political authorities alike. A week after the abduction and gang-rape, the police cracked the case and arrested all three accused. The accused were Yogesh Poojary (30), Hariprasad Poojary (27) and Anand Panara (28). Yogesh and Hariprasad are autorickshaw drivers, while Anand does not have any permanent occupation. Two more persons, Balachandra, brother of Yogesh, and Harindra, brother of Hariprasad, who tried to destroy evidence in the case were also taken into custody. The girl had initially refused to give a statement to the police as she was worried about being shunned by the societ...

"And I think to myself what a wonderful world". I woke up this morning with Louis Armstrong’s heartening song playing in my head. I looked outside as I could hear rain hitting my window. It looked magical. I instantly sensed a feeling of completeness, like I always belonged here. Somehow I felt I was in the right place finally. This small town had opened its arms and welcomed me gleefully and I was glad to be a part of it. After living for 23 years in the ever enterprising Mumbai, shifting permanently to the small temple town of Udupi was a big move. Having been born and raised in Mumbai I was a complete Mumbaikar at heart. I was a city girl. Relocation was a big deal. Taking this step meant a complete lifestyle change. One has to begin things from scratch. Was I ready to do this? As I sat there thinking about the last few months and all the pandemonium that followed - the most lucid question to ask was if the move was worth it. The answer was indubitably yes. Moving ...