AN ATTEMPTED RAILFANNING THAT WENT HORRIBLY ASTRAY
The Bangalore - Mumbai railway line goes alongside my apartment complex at Hoysalanagar just past the nondescript Chennasandra Stn. I get an elevated view of the track from my flat but not good enough to satiate my desires as a railfan. Little wonder that I decided to go closer to the track, a little ahead of my complex, for a better look, which ultimately proved to be too close for my comfort and ended up with a narrow escape from danger.
It was around 7.30 last...
more...

evening and I tried to find a way to get as near as possible to the railway track in order to have a glimpse of the majestic NDLS-bound Karnataka Express. To reach the vantage point I had to negotiate on foot a kuccha road leading from the 4th or 5th Main of T.C.Palya Main Road, Ramamurthy Nagar to a mound overlooking the rail line. Between the road and the track was a slum which I had to cross to reach my destination.
Just as I crossed the narrow path that led to the slum, I was in for a rude shock. I was accosted by 3 young toughs one of whom placed his hand on my shoulder in a vice-like grip and another caught hold of my left hand. The third fella was facing me and launched a torrent of abuse in Kannada. Suddenly he snatched my mobile which was in my right hand. After I could recover from the initial shock, I asked in Hindi " Yeh, kya ho raha hai ? ". My question was greeted with another barrage of abuse. Fortunately I could not understand what they were trying to achieve or the meaning of the abuses. After some time I gently said " Kannada gothilla ", the only 2 words I know in the local language. The abusive one in the group asked me what language I knew and I said English and Tamil. He then went on to state in Tamil that 2 of the water tankers, quite of a few which were parked in the open area adjoining the slum, were missing and feared to have been stolen. And that I was considered a PRIME SUSPECT, having been caught loitering near the parking lot. They said that I would not be allowed to leave the place till the police arrived and took me into custody. And only then would my mobile be handed over to me. They asked me what was my purpose in entering that area. My attempts to explain to them that I was trying to approach the track for the purpose of railfanning (Well I didn't use that word) cut no ice. In fact it only made matters worse and one of them asked in Tamil, WHAT WAS THE NEED TO COME ALL THE WAY THERE JUST TO SEE A TRAIN GO BY. However, with the passage of time and the lack of much reaction/response from my side, better sense prevailed among the group which had then increased to about 10 members.
By now , I felt mildly amused and realized that it was a case of mistaken identity. 7 or 8 minutes had passed by then and I started telling them in Tamil, that I felt sorry for their loss but was in no way responsible for what had happened. I asked them to accompany me to my flat where the security personnel would confirm my identity as a retired Bank Officer. They then asked me details about where I lived and finally after 10 mns let me go free with a strict warning not to come anywhere near their slum, whether for railfanning or otherwise.
At the end of the episode I am not too sure whether I was more relieved or amused. It was a probably a mixture of both :)