118. The Umpire's Decision

After it was decided to conduct a fifty over cricket match between the Prakash Nagar cricket team and the Avvai Nagar cricket team, the question arose: who would be the umpire?

Both the captains discussed together and approached Sekhar, a retired cricketer, who had played at the state-level tournaments.

“I am not really interested in being the umpire. My friend Thyagarajan is a better fit. If you want, I will ask him” said Sekhar.

“We have never heard of that name! Has he played in state-level tournaments?” asked Murali, the captain of Prakash Nagar team.

“It’s not as if only cricketers can be good umpires. Even people who have observed cricket matches closely can be good umpires. He is one such person. He has umpired many local-level matches. He knows the rules thoroughly. He is a meticulous observer of the movements of the ball and the players. His decisions are always accurate. Even from a distance, he can call an LBW correctly. His judgment has never been wrong” explained Sekhar.

Both captains looked at each other, nodded, and said, “We will go with him, sir.”

“Wait. I will call him right now and ask him about his availability and willingness” said Sekhar and dialed Thyagarajan's number.

After speaking to Thyagarajan for a minute on the phone, Sekhar said, “Is that so? Wait, I will put the call on speaker so they can also hear.”

After hearing what was said on speaker, Aravindan, the captain of Avvai Nagar team, turned to Murali and said “You have to decide!”

Murali thought for a minute and then said, “We will have him as the umpire, sir,” and looked at Aravindan.

“If it is okay with you, it is okay with me too” replied Aravindan.

Just a few minutes before the match was to begin, Bhadri from the Prakash Nagar team hurriedly came to Murali and said, “Hey, do you know who the umpire is?”

“I know” said Murali.

“You know?”

“It is fine. Mr. Sekhar spoke very highly of him.”

“Alright... but…” Aravindan began, when the umpire’s whistle was heard.

“Come on, they are calling for the toss” Murali said, hurrying away.

Winning the toss and opting to bat, Prakash Nagar team scored 187 runs in 50 overs.

“Not bad!” said Murali.

“Avvai Nagar team’s batting strength is not so good. They won’t be able to handle our bowlers” said Gokul, who himself was out after scoring just 3 runs!

“If you mess up your fielding the way you messed up your batting, that will mean real trouble for us” snapped Sarathi, showing his irritation over Sarathy's poor show.

After the lunch break, Avvai Nagar team’s innings began.

By the end of thirty overs, the Avvai Nagar team had scored only 80 runs for the loss of five wickets. However, Chandru, who had come in at number three, was playing steadily and cautiously, having scored 30 runs till the end of the thirtieth over.

“He is very dangerous. He has already hit two boundaries and a six. If he settles down, we are in trouble,” said Murali, during the tea break.

At the end of 40 overs, the score was 142 for 7. Chandru had scored 62 runs.

“The match is slipping away from the Prakash Nagar team and moving towards Avvai Nagar team. Chandru seems to be calling out 'Victory, be on my side!’” said the commentator.

In the 42nd over, a ball from Nikhil seemed to have barely touched Chandru’s bat and was caught by wicketkeeper Bhadri. Bhadri yelled “Hey!” and raised his hand in appeal. But, he was not sure if the ball had hit the bat! Chandru stood unmoved with a smile, as if it hadn’t.

After a few seconds, the umpire raised his hand signaling that Chandru was out. Chandru looked at the umpire in disbelief and walked away, feeling disappointed.

Even Murali couldn’t believe what he saw. It looked as if the luck had changed sides. 'What Mr. Sekhar had said about the umpire was right” he told himself. 

After Chandru’s dismissal, the direction of the game changed. Avvai Nagar team lost all its wickets for 179 runs in 47 overs. Prakash Nagar team won the match by 8 runs.

“Congrats!” said Aravindan, captain of Avvai Nagar team, shaking Murali’s hand. “Not just for the win, but for your maturity in taking a decision about the umpire too!”

“Yes. Even I was a bit scared” said Bhadri.

“Scared! Why? What decision did Murali take?” asked Nikhil, perplexed

“Chandru’s dismissal was the turning point of the match. It was a very tough decision. Even if the umpire had not given him out, we couldn’t have blamed him” said Murali.

“Yeah. He is a great umpire, no doubt. But why did Bhadri say he was scared?”

“Do you know who the umpire is? He is Chandru’s father!” said Murali.

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 12
Neutrality

Verse 118 (In Tamil)

saman seydhu sIr thUkkum kOl pOl amaindhu oru pal kOdAmai
sAnROrkku azhagu.

Meaning:

Like a weighing scale that is balanced and sways correctly,

the grace of noble people lies in being neutral, without leaning towards one side.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'umpire-in mudivu' by the same author)

Verse 119
Verse 118

492. The Calf That Kicked the Master

"What is this, sir? You are the one who toiled for so many years to build up this party. And like a calf kicking the one who raised it, that lad Ilango, nurtured by you, has got you removed from the position of the President of our party!" said Shanmugam.

“Backstabbing has become very common in politics! I promoted that young man, ignoring the objections of many senior leaders, only because I thought he would make a good leader for the party. But like you said, the calf I had raised kicked me in the chest” said Velayudham, with bitterness.

“This is outrageous! I still can’t accept that someone like you, who is seen as the embodiment of our party, has been removed through a resolution of the General Council of our party!” said Ramu, another loyal supporter of Velayudham.

“In the upcoming elections, our party is poised to win. And if that happens, you are the one who will become the Chief Minister. That is why Ilango, in conspiracy with a few senior leaders, convened an emergency General Council meeting when you were abroad and had you removed. Still, out of the 96 members who attended the meeting, 46 voted in your favor. The party workers are with you. Ilango won’t be able to do anything” said Anbu, a senior leader.

“No, Anbu. Ilango has created an image that he is in full control of the party. People have a habit of standing behind winners. That is the natural order of things - more so in politics. If we are not careful, we will be left with nothing. Even if the grassroot members are with us, when the party machinery is in his hands, there is not much we can do,” said Velayudham.

“So, what are we going to do now?”

“There is already a split in the party. Since most of the members are with us, we can file a petition with the Election Commission requesting that the party symbol be allotted to us. The Commission won’t take an immediate decision. Instead, it will freeze the symbol and assign separate symbols to both the factions. Then, we can garner people's support and win the election. Ilango will be left with nothing. But Ilango has the support of the ruling party at the Centre. So, the Election Commission might consider the fact that I was removed through a resolution of the General Council and allot the symbol to him. If he gets the symbol, it will work in his favor. Even though we may have more public support than him, a sizeable number of voters will be inclined to make their choice based on the symbol. Because of the advantage of having the symbol with him, Ilango may end up winning more seats than us. And with the ruling party at the Centre supporting him, it won’t be surprising if he wins the election and forms the government!” said Velayudham.

“In that case, what are we going to do?” asked Shanmugam, worried.

“We will see. There are still six months left before the election. Let us wait and see what decision the Election Commission makes. If the Commission gives him the symbol, we will have to face a major challenge.”

As Velayudham had feared, the Election Commission allotted the party symbol to Ilango’s faction.

Velayudham summoned a meeting of his supporters.

“What I feared has happened. Ilango is going to ally with the ruling party at the Centre. He will spend enormous sums of money, use every trick in the book, and try to win the election. If he becomes the Chief Minister, he will wipe us out completely, using oppressive measures against our party. There is only one way to stop this!” said Velayudham, and paused.

“What way?”

After a brief hesitation, Velayudham said, “The Chief Minister has sent me a message through one of his emissaries. If we form an alliance with his party, he is willing to give us 40% of the seats, the post of the Deputy Chief Minister, and ten ministerial positions, if our alliance wins the election. What do you say? Should we accept this proposal?”

“What are you saying, sir? We were in a position to contest and win the election on our own. And now you want to ally with the very party we have been opposing fiercely, and settle for the position of a junior partner in the alliance? You, who had held the position of the Chief Minister in the past, now want to accept the post of the Deputy Chief Minister... How can we agree to this?” asked Anbu.

“We can be proud of our past glory and confident of public support for our party. But, we must never underestimate our opponents. If Ilango becomes the Chief Minister, we are finished. This is our only option to stop him from coming to power. If we ally with the ruling party, our alliance will win big. Then Ilango will be left with nothing. I am not going to be the Deputy Chief Minister, Anbu will be. I will ask for the role of the alliance coordinator - a key position. The Chief Minister will agree to this. He has no other choice. So the reins will still be in our hands. What do you say?” said Velayudham.

Everyone clapped enthusiastically and expressed their support for Velayudham’s decision.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 50
Knowing the Right Place

Verse 491 (in Tamil):

muraN sErndha moymbinavarkkum araN sErndhAm

Akkam palavum tharum..

Meaning:

Even to men of great valour and power, (being inside) a fortress will provide many advantages.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'vaLarththa kadA' by the same author.)

Verse 493
Verse 491

491. The Minister's Reluctance

In the secret council convened by King Parakesari of the Makuda kingdom, only the minister Kannabiran and the army chief Thadantholan were present.

“It has been five years since the Mullai kingdom occupied thirty villages of our country, along our northern border. We now have a great opportunity to reclaim them. At present, Mullai is engaged in a war with Parijatha country on their eastern frontier. If we strike now, Mullai won't be able to resist us. What do you say?” asked the king.

“We can launch an attack, Your Majesty! But our northern border is mostly mountainous. Our troops will have to climb uphill. Since the troops of Mullai country are stationed on the high ground, it will be easier for them to spot and strike our forces. Therefore, we must carefully choose the right place for the attack” said the army chief Thadantholan.

“Is there such a suitable place?” asked the king.

The army chief remained silent.

The king looked at the minister.

“Your Majesty, launching an attack from our border would be extremely difficult” said the minister hesitantly.

“Did I summon you both here just to hear that it’s impossible for us to attack Mullai country?” the king asked angrily.

He continued, “Right now, since a war is being fought on Mullai kingdom’s eastern border, all its forces will be concentrated there. On its southern border - specifically, the area belonging to our country occupied by them - there won’t be many troops. If we don’t launch an attack now, when will we reclaim our lost land?” said the king, in a tone of frustration.

“Forgive me, Your Majesty! We shouldn't underestimate the enemy. We must understand the enemy's options first. There’s one key person missing from this meeting. Without getting the information from him, it wouldn’t be wise to take any decision” said the minister.

After thinking for a moment, the king said, “You must be referring to the head of the spy unit. Fine. If he is in the palace, summon him immediately!”

“No, Your Majesty. He is currently involved in gathering routine intelligence from our spies inside the enemy kingdom. He is not in the palace right now. Before leaving the palace, he informed me that he would return with all the necessary information in two days. My request is that we reconvene after he returns,” said the minister.

The king silently nodded.

Three days later, the meeting was reconvened, in which the head of the spy unit was also present. He shared the information gathered by him from the spies, in detail.

“According to the information provided by the head of the spy unit, the king of the Mullai kingdom is attempting to make peace with the Parijatha kingdom. His troops have been widely deployed across the occupied parts of our country. Though they may be fewer in number, if we attack from our border, all of them will regroup at the border and strike us back. What can we do in this situation?” the king asked the minister, in a tone that now carried exhaustion and helplessness.

“I have a plan, Your Majesty! The Korai river flows through the western region of the Mullai kingdom. This river is shared by both the Mullai and the Shenbaga kingdoms. Mullai has very few troops stationed there - only a handful of soldiers, as confirmed by our spies. Shenbaga is our ally. Though it has no enmity with Mullai, the two countries are not on friendly terms, either. So, with the permission of the Shenbaga king, we can send our soldiers by boat along the Korai river and have them enter the occupied territories through the western border. They can encircle the Mullai troops stationed there. If we do that, the troops of Mullai country won’t be able to resist us. At the same time, our forces can also advance from the south. I have already discussed this plan with the army chief. He agrees that this plan is executable” said the minister.

The king, visibly thrilled, responded, “Excellent plan, Minister! I must admit, I was disappointed with you, when you delayed the discussion last time by pointing out several obstacles. But now, I understand the reason for your reservations about my proposal. Your proposal, which considers the importance of selecting the right place for the attack and a clear understanding of the enemy's options, before our deciding to act, is truly commendable.”

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 50
Knowing the Right Place

Verse 491 (in Tamil):

thodangaRka evvinaiyum eLLaRka muRRum
idam kaNda pin alladhu.

Meaning:

Don't start any task, underestimating the resistance (or obstacles), without choosing the right place to do it.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'pOrukkuth thayArA' by the same author.)

Verse 491
Verse 490

1126. One Who Dwells in My Eye

"I have always been holding you inside my heart" said Ram.

"It is usual for men to say such things to the women they love. I don't believe it" said Anjana.

"What should I do to make you believe me? It is said that Hanuman tore open his chest and showed to Rama the image of Rama*, he had been holding in his heart. Should I do such a thing?"

"You can't, because YOU are Ram, not me! I am Anjana, the mother of Hanuman. There is some kind of a role reversal here!"

"When you say role reversal, are you implying that you have been holding me in your heart?" asked Ram.

"Holding someone in our heart is not a big deal for anyone. We keep so many things in my heart. You keep me too, among other things" said Anjana.

"Gosh! You are being so academic. Saying such romantic things adds some thrill to the conversation between lovers. If I say that I am holding you in my heart, you are expected to reciprocate by saying that you are holding me in your heart too. That will make me feel happy. But you are making a logical analysis of what I have said. It is exasperating!" said Ram.

"I am doing even better than you. I am holding you inside my eye."

"You are saying this to counter my saying that I am holding you in my heart."

"There is a difference between holding a person in the heart and holding the person in the eye. The heart is a garbage bin. Everything gets dumped into it. But the eye is sensitive. You can't keep anything in the eye. When I say that I am holding you inside my eye, I mean that even if you are not in front of my eyes, your image is always inside my eye."

"Oh! It is nice to hear what you say. But, be careful. Whenever you close and open your eyes or even wink your eyes, my image inside your eye will get squeezed. Will it not hurt me?"

"It won't. Even if there is a tiny particle of dust inside the eye, it will irritate the eye and cause pain. But, even though you are always inside my eye, I don't feel any pain or irritation. Does it not mean that you are present in my eye in a form subtler than the tiniest particle of dust? Your presence in my eye is like that of air. Being so subtle in form, you won't feel any pain" said Anjana.

"First, I should dwell on your tongue and learn to speak intelligently like you" said Ram, admiring his lover.

*Hanuman, a character in the Hindu epic Rama is depicted as a staunch devotee of Rama, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

Thirukkural
Section 3

Love

Chapter 113
In Praise of Love

Verse 1126 (in Tamil):
kaN uLLin pOgAr imaippin paruvarAr
nuNNiyar em kAdhalar avar.

Meaning:

My lover won't step out of my eyes. He won't feel any pain, by my closing or winking my eyes. He is so subtle in form.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'kaN mUdum vELaiyilum' by the same author.)

Verse 1127
Verse 1125

490. A Long Wait For Revenge

A meeting of the Visaka committee of the company had been convened to inquire into complaint of sexual assault, given against Shivasankar, a senior manager of the company, by his personal secretary Kalpana.

"What is this thing called Visaka committee?" Sivasankar asked his colleague Sankameswaran.

"As per an order of the Supreme Court, all organizations are required to constitute a committee called Visaka committee, to enquire into allegations of sexual misconduct against any of their employees. There is aserious allegation against you. But you don't seem to be concerned at all! Is it due to the moral courage, resulting from your not being guilty, or...?" asked Sankameswaran.

"I have not committed any wrong. In my annual appraisal report about Kalpana, I had recorded that her performance was not satisfactory. Because of this, she didn't get her promotion. Angered by this, she has filed this complaint against me, by way of seeking a revenge."

"I believe you. But what if the members of the committee believe Kalpana? Be cautious."

"First of all, Kalpana has no evidence" said Sivasankar. Then, correcting himself, he said, "how can there be any evidence, when I didn't commit any wrong? Secondly, Manjula, the Chairperson of the Visaka committee, had worked under me for ten years. Only recently, she got a promotion and became a manager. She learned the work from me. She is very faithful to me. So, I am sure that the committee won't act against me."

But, belying Shivasankar's expectations, the Visaka committee determined that Shivasankar was guilty of sexually assaulting Kalpana and recommended his dismissal from the company.

After learning about the committee's verdict, Shivasankar met Manjula.

"Why did you do this to me, Manjula? Don't you know about me?" asked Sivasankar.

"Shiva! You know what I know about you, don't you?" said Majula, with a mischievous smile.

Shivasankar noticed that she addressed him 'Shiva,' deviating from her practice of addressing him 'sir' all these years.

"It is true that during the early years of your working under me, I once had sex with you, by forcing myself on you, ignoring your protests. But, I did it succumbing to a momentary weakness. I promised you that such an incident won't happen again and I have kept my promise. You have also put that incident behind you and been cordial with me all these years."

"I have not forgotten what you did to me. I was only biding for my time. I wanted to complain to the management about you, but a friend of mine dissuaded me from doing so, saying that you were related to the then General Manager. She cited the incidents of a couple of people losing their jobs, as a consequence of their complaining against you. So, I decided to wait. Since I was working under you, I had to pretend to be cordial with you. But I was careful to ensure that you won't make any sexual advances towards me, one more time. The General Manager who was protecting you had retired a few months back. The new General Manager is known for his integrity and no-nonsense approach, but I couldn't complain to him about an incident that happened ten years back. So, I had to keep waiting. When Kalpana cried to me narrating your amorous behaviour towards her, I asked her to record your amorous talk in her mobile and then file a complaint. She did accordingly. Since there was strong evidence against you, everyone in the committee could easily conclude that you were guilty. When you violated me ten years back, I had to suffer silently. It is a kind of poetic justice that I, a victim of your assault, came to occupy the position of a judge, as the chairperson of the Visaka Committee and pronounce a judgement against you" said Manjula.

When Sivasankar reluctantly looked at Manjula's face, he sensed in her eyes, the pain suffered by her ten years back.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 49
Knowing One's Strength

Verse 490 (in Tamil):

Kokkokka kUmbum paruvaththu maRRadhan
kuththokka sIrththa idaththu.

Meaning:

Be like a heron: still, when the time is not ripe, and spear the prey when it is near.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'pAliyal pugAr' by the same author.)

Verse 491
Verse 489

117. The Playground

As Manavalan reluctantly opened the door of Velayudham's cabin, and stepped in, Velayudham, who was talking on the phone signaled Manavalan to take his seat.

After completing his telephonic conversation, Velayudham greeted Manavalan with a smile and said, "How are you, Manavalan?"

"I am fine, sir. Mr. Ravi told me that you wanted to see me" said Manavalan.

"Yes. You know what I wanted to see you about!"

Manavalan remained silent.

"It is about that playground. It is lying unused and is becoming wasted due to disuse. What is wrong in giving it to someone for putting it to good use?" asked Velayudham.

"Sir! As you know, that land belongs to the Municipal Corporation. It was meant to be used as a playground by the public. But, because of improper maintenance, bushes and other plants have grown on it. It is also being used as a public toilet. We have written to the Municipal Corporation to clean the place and make it fit to be used as a playground by the public."

"It is true. But they have not done anything about it. They will say they don't have the funds needed for cleaning and refurbishing the place. They have not even started cleaning the storm water drains on the streets. Are they going to do this?"

"Sir?"

"The condition of the land will deteriorate further. The minister says that we can give the land on lease to an applicant, who wants to run a gym there. Why shouldn't we give our approval for this?"

"Sir! A private school situated nearby wanted to clean the place and use it as the playground for their school. They even said that the playground could be used by the public during the weekends and school vacations. But, we didn't accept that proposal!"

"Well. They wanted to take over government land and throw it open to the public for two days in a week, as if they were doing a charity! How could the government accept this?"

"As per that proposal, the place would have been useful to the students. Even on that consideration, we didn't accept the proposal. How can we agree to give the land free to a private firm?"

"We are not giving it for free. We are giving it for rent."

"Sir! How can we justify giving a property worth Rupees Ten Crore on lease for a monthly rent of one thousand rupees?"

"Manavalan! You and I can't decide whether a proposal is reasonable or not. The minister wants to give the land on long term lease to a person known to him. This is an open secret. The higher authorities need a report from our office, stating that that place is in an unusable condition. You are the officer at the field level. You have to give this report. I and my superior officers will endorse your report. Based on our report, the Secretary will issue an order giving the land on lease to the minister's friend for ninety nine years. If you want, I will get you some complaints from some people living in that area that since the land is in an unhygienic condition, it is causing health hazard to the people there, resulting in children falling sick quite often. You can use those complaints as supporting evidence for your report"

"We have already received many such complaints, sir!"

"That simplifies the problem, doesn't it?"

"What is to be done is cleaning that place. We have written to the Municipal Corporation several times, about this."

"Manavalan! This discussion is not going anywhere. I know that you are a man of integrity. I am not asking you to do anything for money. I am only asking you to give a report that will suit the minister's wish. You are not going to give any false report. Is it not a fact that due to disuse, the playground is in an unhygienic condition? You don't have to say in your report that a gym can be set up there. It is enough if you mention that we may consider using that place for some other purpose. Based on that, we will build up the case" pleaded Velayudham.

"I am sorry, sir!" said Manavalan, tersely.

"I think you are aware that your name is in the list of officers to be promoted to the next level. You are going to get your promotion in two or three months, once the list is approved by my superiors. Are you going to miss your promotion?"

"I take leave of you, sir" said Manavalan, getting up from his seat.

"Manavalan! Even if you don't give this report, the minister won't give up. Another person will be posted in your place, a report obtained from him and the proposal implemented. If you got a transfer, please don't think that I had any role in it" said Velayudham.

Manavalan nodded his head with a smile and left the room.

Most probably, he would be transferred to another place. Since it was October, he won't be able to admit his children in the middle of the academic year, in a school, in his new place of working. He would have to leave his family here and go. Maintaining the families at two places would mean additional expenditure, apart from other inconveniences.

This had happened a few times earlier too. Because of these transfers, his finances had been affected.

In spite of having been in government service for several years with a reasonably good salary, Manavalan had not been able to buy a house. He didn't have much savings either.

'Would people laugh at me?'

He was not sure.

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 12
Neutrality

Verse 117 (In Tamil)

keduvAga vaiyAdhu ulagam naduvAga
nanRikkaN thangiyAn thAzhvu.

Meaning:

The world will not speak ill of one who has stumbled into poverty

because of being fair and righteous.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'yiLaiyAttuth thidal' by the same author)

Verse 118 (Soon)
Verse 116

489. The New Chief Minister

With Santhalingam losing his position as the Chief Minister, after he was convicted for corruption, by a court, the legislature party of his party met and chose Murugan as the new Chief Minister.

Santhalingam, the undisputed leader of his party had been leading his party in such a manner that he was the only leader of the party and that all others in the party were his subordinates, with no power, authority or discretion.

The decision of the legislators to elect Murugan as their leader was only as per the command of Santhalingam.

Though several senior leaders of the party, with long experience in politics, who had served as ministers, were hoping to get the opportunity of taking up the place vacated by Santalingam were shocked and dismayed by Santhalingam choosing Murugan, a junior minister in his cabinet with very little experience, who was not even known to many people, as his successor, they did not even utter a mutter of protest, since they knew that such expression of dissent, apart from being futile, would only jeopardize their position in the party.

When the Governor administered the oath of office to the Chief Minister and other ministers, another shock was waiting for the senior leaders.

Murugan did not include in his cabinet many people who were ministers in Santhalingam's cabinet. He had inducted several new people into his cabinet.

Soon after Murugan, after being sworn in, took his seat in the Chief Minister's room in the secretariat, three senior leaders who had been ministers in Santalingam's cabinet barged into his room.

Adimoolam, the most senior among the three, even before taking his seat, asked Murugan in a loud and angry tone, "Murugan! What do you think of yourself?"

Since Adimoolam had held the second position in terms of seniority in the cabinet of three Chief Ministers, he had the nickname 'The Permanent Number 2.' He was upset and angry that he was robbed of that permanent place!

"Sir! While speaking to the Chief Minister, you should show the respect due to his office" said Murugan, calmly.

Controlling the anger that surged in him, Adimoolam told Murugan, "You have become the Chief Minister only by virtue of the charity of our leader. But you are acting, without considering that fact. Our leader expected you to run the government with the ministers in his cabinet, act as per their advice and return the Chief Minister's post to him, when he comes back. But you have constituted a cabinet with people of your choice, leaving out seniors like us."

"Sir! You are a well-informed person. So, you must be aware that it is the Chief Minister's prerogative to choose the members of his cabinet " said Murugan, tersely.

"Power has gone to your head. I am meeting our leader in prison tomorrow when I will apprise him of your arbitrary functioning. He will get you thrown out in no time!" said Adimoolam angrily and left the room in a huff. 

The other two leaders followed him.

After Adimoolam had left, the Chief Secretary came to meet the Chief Minister.

Murugan called the peon and asked him not to allow anyone into his room for the next half an hour.

"Congratulations, sir!" said the Chief Secretary.

"Thank you, sir. I have great regards for you. I have heard about your competence and integrity. I have also observed your functioning, when I was a minister in the previous cabinet. I need your full-fledged support for me to function effectively" Murugan told the Chief Secretary.

"It is my duty to serve you, sir!" said the chief Secretary. After a little hesitation, he added, "I am not saying this because you have become the Chief Minister. I have observed your functioning and made an assessment of you as a person with good potential. I am happy that you have made it to the top so soon."

"Thank you, sir. I want to discuss a few things with you, frankly. I came to politics with the intention of doing good to people. But after entering politics, I discovered that it was not easy. I thought that if I got a suitable opportunity, I would do things for the benefit of the people. Somehow, I came into the good books of our leader, became a legislator and a minister. But, even after becoming a minister, I couldn't do much. I realized that my party expected me to utilize my position and power for the benefit of the party and a few people the party wanted to help, in return for a consideration from them, rather than utilize my position and power to help the poor and the needy. However, I was doing what little good I could do within the constraints I had. Now, quite unexpectedly, this opportunity has come my way. I don't know why our leader chose me over many senior leaders in the party. Perhaps, he had a fear that if he gave this position to some senior leader, that person would try to get himself well-entrenched in power and won't step down, when he came out of prison and became eligible to hold the office. That may be the reason for his choosing a light weight like me, who had no clout in the party. When my leader comes back, I will definitely quit my post, paving the way for him to take over. But, I think it would take at least one year for him to come out, if at all. In any case, we have the election in two years. Therefore, I have decided to make use of this opportunity to deliver a good government to the people and do whatever good I can, to the people, during the short period I have. If I had senior ministers in my cabinet, they might not allow me to do things which I want to. That's why, I have picked up a new set of people as ministers. Like me, they also came to politics, intending to do good to people. I have some ideas. But, to implement them successfully, I need the help and guidance of good officers like you."

"I feel heartened to hear what you have said. I have been pining to work under people like you, who have such noble intentions. But, I am not sure whether you have considered a big obstacle likely to come in your way!" said the Chief Minister.

"I understand what you are hinting at. There will be attempts within my party to vote me out and elect a new leader in my place. Are you not referring to this?"

"Yes. This can happen even within a few days."

"I think the chances for such an eventuality are slim. I am not going to the prison to meet my leader. It will be inappropriate for a Chief Minister to meet a convicted person in the jail. My leader will understand my position. Therefore, there will be no opportunity for him to directly ask me to resign my post. If he conveys this message through some other leaders, I will ignore it. Our party has only a wafer thin majority of five members in the legislature. Therefore, even if our leader comes out on bail soon, the party will not act in haste and precipitate the matter. There is about a month's time for the next session of the legislature. Our party leaders won't do anything till that time. Before that, I will take some quick steps that would result in benefits for the people and create a good impression about my government in the minds of people. After that, it will be difficult for my party leaders to replace me. Even if they replace me, I won't mind. There is a lot that can be done within a month. Have we not had a Chief Minister who amazed every one by doing many good things within two weeks of his being sworn in as the Chief Minister?" said Murugan, smiling. 

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 49
Knowing One's Strength

Verse 489 (in Tamil):

eithaRku ariyadhu iyaindhakkAl annilaiyE
seydhaRku ariya seyal.

Meaning:

If the opportune moment comes, make use of it and accomplish things that are difficult to accomplish.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'pudhiya mudhalvar' by the same author.)

Verse 490
Verse 488