EXTRACTS

By Aditya sengupta

 

“Do you like it?”

“It’s lovely, dear. Thank you.”

“Happy anniversary dear.”

“Happy anniversary.”

 

 

Extract from the last page of the diary of Mahesh Sarkar in the year 1995, after which Mr. Sarkar retired from his occupation and settled in Cape Town, South Africa.

 

 

1^st December,

1995.

A lot of people had come for Dad’s funeral today. I think most of them were his ex-patients. Some doctors of the stupid hospital where he worked had also come. Loads of people kept on coming up to me and giving me their phone numbers and telling me to call them if I needed them and all that fucked up bullshit. I guess people are fools most people don’t lose both their parents one after the other. The only two people Dad really loved never came. One was Mom. The other was his best friend, Paritosh Sen. He was the one who found out Dad’s dead body. I didn’t get time to call him. I thought he knew. The papers made such a big fuss about the way Dad died, that I didn’t really get time to contemplate why he did what he did. It’s been all so fast. And I guess I’ve given up writing. I’m abandoning the novel which I started 4 months back. I was going to dedicate it to Dad. Now, I guess, there’s no reason left to finish it. After all it was he who used to spend the nights reading my stories and giving me suggestions to improve upon. I can’t seem to move my fingers across this page to finish it. I think I’ve lost the ability to write….

I guess this is the last page of my diary.

M.Sarkar.

“How much did this cost, dear?”

“It’s my gift. It’s priceless.”

“Will you place it around my neck then?”

“Gladly.”

 

 

Extract from the postmortem report of Mr. Akash Sarkar, on the 23^rd of September.

 

 

 

Name: Dr. Mr. Akash Motilal Sarkar.

Address: 56 M, 4^th Avenue House, Asian Syndicate,

                 17/6A Park Street.

                 Kolkata: 700-016

 

Occupation: Cardio-vascular surgeon

Name of Spouse: Late Mrs. Suparna Sarkar.

Name of Child/Children: Mr. Mahesh Sarkar.

 

Time of death: 20:52 p.m.

                            18^th September, 1995.

 

Cause of death: Excessive bleeding from arterial

                             veins.

 

Location of death: Room No.204

                                   3^rd Floor, Starson Hospital

Items found – 16 pearl beads covered in blood.

 

 

 

 

 

“This necklace is the grandest gift anyone has every given me.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

“How can I not like such a beautiful gift?”

“I love you.”

 

 

Extract from the last page of the diary of Mr. Akash Sarkar. This diary was discovered in his bedroom three days after his death on 18^th September.

 

 

13^th April,

1995

The necklace has been purchased at long last. I plan to surprise Suparna tomorrow morning itself. It’s a magnificent pearl necklace. Each pearl costs an approximate 20,000 rupees. There are around 16 pearls in that necklace. Now I don’t mean to brag, but that’s a lot of money. But for our 25^th marriage anniversary, nothing is too cheap. I know she must be planning something equally worthwhile for me, but I guess this necklace will reign supreme. No more talk now, two more surgeries tomorrow morning, before that – Suparna’s gift. Tomorrow will be special…

“Where did you get the money to buy this necklace?”

“Money’s not a factor. It’s been 25 long years with you. And today, money can never be a factor.”

 

Extract from the last page of the diary of Mrs. Suparna Sen, who died on the 14^th of April from a severe heatstroke.

 

13^th April,

1995.

 

Tomorrow is our 25^th marriage anniversary. From the excitement and the apprehension, I wish I could keep my hands from shaking. I can’t wait for tomorrow morning to dawn bright and beautiful. I’ve got Akash a handsome Titan gold watch – the one he’s been staring at since it’s arrival in the showroom. Men can be so predictable at times. He’s thrown me a million hints that he wants that watch. Pity me, I won’t even get that pearl necklace that I so wanted while we were on holiday in France last month. But there’s hope still – Akash has yet to disappoint me on our anniversary.

Good night…

 

 

“And I’ve got you….hmm…guess.”

“Let me guess, hmm – can it be that Titan Gold watch, can it?”

“Ha ha ha, so funny. It was an easy guess. You knew I’d get that didn’t you?”

“Yes, dear, I did. And I love you for it.”

 

 

Extract from a newspaper clipping dated 30^th June, 1995.

 

The unconscious body on one time famous cardio-vascular surgeon Mr. Akash Sarkar was found on the crossing of Rashbehari Avenue late last night. His clothes were torn and his hair, unshaven and dirty. He was picked up last night by the night policemen of Jadavpur Police Station. An excessive amount of nicotine and alcohol substitutes have been detected in his body after blood tests were carried out by the AMRI Hospital. Following the tragic demise of his wife on the past 14^th of April, Akash Sarkar had publicly retired from his profession. His sanity of mind was under question of the officials. He soon squandered the family wealth on cigarettes and alcohol. Now, sadly, he is in acute debt and completely bankrupt. His colleague Mr. G.Das said, “The only way Akash can save himself now is by selling off his family possessions and items of value.” This is just another sorrowful case of mental retardation caused due to the death of a loved one. More news related to mental depressions on Page 5.

 

 

“I’m going to go mad from delight. You are actually giving me 10,000 rupees to shop for anything I want?”

“Yes, darling. I have 2 surgeries this morning, and this is a sort of keeping you busy while I’m at it.”

 

Extract from the last page of the diary of Mr.Paritosh Sen, close friend of Mr.Akash Sarkar. He left his house, early morning on the 19^th of April and has not yet been found.

 

18th April,

1995.

 

What I have witnessed is beyond understanding, beyond words and beyond imagination. To see your friend, your closest childhood friend in such a state of physical and mental repugnance, is mortifying. I received a call today at around 7 p.m. It was Akash. He was hysterical. Nothing could stop him from laughing. He kept mumbling something about a ‘necklace’. I could understand nothing, except that he needed me badly. I immediately set off, knowing that he had made the call from ‘STARSONS HOSPITAL’. I reached the hospital at a quarter to eight. Akash generally sits in room 204 on the 3^rd floor to meet patients. I wasted no time in reaching room 204. As soon as I opened the door, I saw darkness. Only a dim light illuminated the room. Akash was huddled in the corner of the room; blood spilt nastily all around him. He was laughing feverishly, tears falling from his eyes at the same time. He screamed at me, “Paritosh, they’ll never take that necklace from me. Never!” His laughter rang violently in my ears. Shaking with fear, I stood rooted to the spot. Suddenly, he started crying out, “Help me sew it back, Paritosh. Help me sew it back.”

I approached him silently and I looked at his arms…oh! So dreadful.

 

“Sir, your wife. She’s been…she’s had a severe heatstroke. We’ve taken her to MediCentre Hospital…sir, we need you to come here right this instant…yes sir, Mahesh has been informed, he’ll be coming directly.”

 

Video Extract from the security files of Starsons Hospital.

 

NOTE: The following words have not been spoken of or written of, nor will they ever be spoken or written of.

 

The CCTV camera placed inside room 204 of Starsons Hospital recorded the movements of Dr.Akash Sarkar on the 18^th of April. What happened past 18:00 hours on the same day is noted as follows without any exaggerative adjectives.

 

Dr. Akash Sarkar enters the room silently. He throws the key of the door on the ground. He has a slight air of drunkenness. His clothes are torn, hair is white and uncut. He falls blindly on the work tables and starts rummaging the medical drawers. He withdraws a scalpel and a needle. From inside his shirt pocket, he takes out a pearl necklace. He turns off the lights in the room except one corner floor-light. He falls to that corner, settling against the wall. Nothing can be seen of Dr.Sarkar, except his silhouette, shrouded in darkness. He takes his cellular phone and at 18:57 p.m. he calls someone. He then drops the phone. From now on, Dr. Sarkar does nothing, but scream out in muffled tones. It is evident that he is pain. Some blood spurting on the floor is faintly visible. At 19:43 p.m. Mr. Paritosh Sen, friend of Dr. Sarkar, enters. From the outside light, we glimpse a pool of blood on the floor and a fanatic expression on Dr. Sarkar’s face. The latter speaks in a muffled voice. His voice is not audible. But after sometime, he screams out the following words – “Help me sew it back, Paritosh. Help me sew it back.” The video goes blank thereafter.

 

 

“I’m sorry sir, but your wife has passed away. It was an unfortunate incident. We could do nothing about it. Nothing at all. I’m sure you understand. We tried our best…so sorry, sir…so sorry.”

 

NOTE : What exactly had happened to Dr. Akash Sarkar is something that nobody knows clearly except the deceased and Mr. Paritosh Sen, who has not been found since the 19^th of April, 1995. Some people say that Dr.Sarkar had slit his wrist in order to commit suicide, which explains his motive of taking the scalpel. Some are of the opinion that after slitting his wrist, he wanted to sew it back, with a needle, thus explaining his motive of taking the needle. However, no two theories match. And his frequent ranting about the necklace does not match in with these theories, since the beads of the necklace

 

However, one person had suggested that Dr. Sarkar might have slit his wrists, and then had pushed the beads of pearls inside his wrists so that they could not be separated from him. This explains the bloody beads of pearls being found and also the reason why Dr. Sarkar had shouted- “Help me sew it back.”

 

But this theory was set aside as everyone agreed that such a thing was too brutal for a human to commit. No-one accepted the fact that love makes us do strange things.

 

Case closed.

 

 

“Thank you dear. That was the best anniversary ever,”

“I know, darling. I know.”