Page 59 - English Reader - 6

Alagu decided to sell the surviving bullock. He sold it to a trader Samjhu Sahu, who promised to pay
Alagu within a month. But no sooner had Samjhu brought the bullock home, he began to work the
poor animal to death. The bullock had been accustomed to a wholesome diet, plenty of rest, and
good grooming at Alagu Chowdhary’s. The life he was now forced to lead was exactly the opposite.
At the end of one long and exhausting day, when he was forced to pull double the load he normally
pulled, the bullock collapsed and died.

The highway was deserted. There were no villages nearby. Samjhu had to spend the night on the
cart. He must have fallen asleep, for when he awoke, he found that his entire day’s earnings of about
two hundred rupees had been stolen and so had most of his goods. Cursing his fate, Samjhu went
home.
Some months went by. Whenever Alagu asked Samjhu to pay him for the bullock he had bought
from him, Samjhu would flatly refuse. ‘’You sold me a half-dead animal,” he said. “Because of him I
lost so much money! And now you want payment?”

The two men almost came to blows. The villagers separated them and advised them to call a
panchayat to resolve the matter.
The panchayat assembled a few evenings later. Samjhu appointed Jumman Sheikh as sarpanch.
Alagu’s heart sank, but he did not disagree.

Awareness of responsibility often changes a person. So it was that despite his enmity with Alagu,
Jumman experienced a change come over him as he took his place as sarpanch. ‘‘I am now the
arbiter of truth and justice,’’ a little voice said within him. ‘‘I must not allow my personal prejudices
to cloud my judgement.’’
The panchayat began to question the two opponents. Everyone seemed to agree that Samjhu should
pay for the bullock he had bought. But some people thought the price should be reduced because
Samjhu had suffered a financial loss as a result of the bullock’s death. There were others who wanted
Samjhu to pay the full price as well as be punished for his cruelty towards an animal.

After hearing all the arguments, Jumman Sheikh pronounced the panchayat’s verdict.
“It is only proper,” he said, “that Samjhu Sahu should pay Alagu Chowdhary the full price for his
bullock. The animal was perfectly healthy when he was sold. He died only because of overwork and
an insufficient diet. Alagu Chowdhary is not required to reduce the price of the bullock. If he does so,
that is his good nature. As for whether Samjhu Sahu should be punished for ill-treating the bullock,
that is another matter and outside the scope of this panchayat.”

Alagu could hardly believe his ears! He stood up and shouted joyfully, ‘‘Panch Parmeshwar ki jai!’’
A little later, Jumman sought out his old friend, embraced him and wept. “Alagu,” he said, “after you
were sarpanch at Khalajan’s panchayat, I became your bitterest enemy. But today I have realised
that for a panch, friendship and enmity are not important. Only justice matters. The voice of the
panchayat is the voice of our conscience.”

Alagu too began to weep. The tears of the two old friends washed away the enmity from their hearts
and revived their friendship.

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