JOURNEY TO LAWYER’S PARADISE

The typical winters are shy to show their true nature in tropics, but they are omnipresent. The railway station is not so packed yet the crowd is enjoyable. Carrying a millions of stories and many yet to come the wagons are whining. The luggage was taking rest over the dust, as it knew for long this is to come. The fulcrums are moving leaving behind wide farmlands, waterbodies and tunnels, sleeping over drylands and vast valleys, waking up at the ridge. At times winter showed her true nature. The morning was interesting as had to share the seat with a passenger who loves to smoke local weed every 300th second. As the borders changed, people changed, destinations changed.

The smiling food delivery agent was a refreshment himself. Crossing ravines of Chambal, picturesque Gwalior was standing royally greeting his guests. The city of hearts where people are in search of a better life, is waking up to the winters. The white flag hoisted over the land goes beyond the eye sight. The experiences made me more excited to reach my destination which I was longing.

While crossing the bridge which spans over the river that borders, saw the boat carrying goods to faraway land, the boatman was standing at the bow as if he is bearing a flag. Heading to the colonial structure which makes you feel England is a stone throw away. I stood at the gate looked at the face and tried to respect, but he is in a slumber but I felt like the forehead telling me “see I am going to be here peacefully, let me go back to my sleep”. The garden and statue adorned in the corner excited me more than the classrooms. Routinely meeting new faces from different parts of the nation was enriching, one realises the diversity this country provides is unparallel. Each person you meet have a different and definite reason to tell and decisions around it and how those decisions influence the socio-political life. You walk around you see people with different ideology, orientation, thought process but all are connected by a common thread. Slowly I started attending classes, on a mundane day I walked into Dr. Mathangi Iyyer’s class. One travels from faraway hinterland to urban crowd, see timescale changing in seconds sitting there. When she swayed her hands I felt as if justice was being served. Like a child I sat at room no. 21, a magic of arguments was unfolding in front of me. Flipping through the cases, understanding the facets of justice being changed in moments, which takes you back to one. Here I met the quintessential poem reciting wannabe flamboyant yet naïve friend, out of somewhere. You just pick him up or he picks you that’s it the code becomes part of your life.

The roads and pathways were dressing up to give way for summers by shaking and dusting up, with the nexus of local winds. The birch leaves and young minds both were yearning for moisture. I find the bougainvillea flowers at my balcony are more pink than they usually are, sometimes as a secret mission the newspaper boy throws newspaper into these bushes and I have to find it. While having my black tea at the balcony I didn’t know this is the day I am going to see the girl with most beautiful eyes. Whenever her sight falls on me I was praying let the period of limitation shall not apply this time. Walking with elegance and innocence at same time cladding the white scarf, I understood how it will be raining in desert. The aisles and corridors conspired for our eye locks, the stairs bowed for us, the wind gave notice of her arrival. It seemed like bougainvillea of my balcony took inspiration from her cheeks. In every girl I saw her face, the routine pathway to campus felt new to me. It was like nature saying be loved.

Whether you like it or not exams will come to you, call of duty. Forth coming days were becoming attached to library hall which has hanging lights and fans from tall roofs where you smell age old books and find a connection with letters. While walking pass through the portraits of alumni, one feel proud and happiness you see we all sat on this creaky chairs at some point of our life. Confused between whether it is my bed or library give sound sleep, spending sands in front of books you start realising fellow humans need to be appreciated, protected and at times you have to fight for them if there is a reason. When veil of silence is lifted it gives way for a perspective we never found existed, which is what art of conversations gifts you. At times we forget to talk, open up because we are scared we will be judged. Open talks need to be appreciated because after very long time these conversations prevails. Exams gave way to internship days, where you are just a child born again. Internship gives you freedom of donning multiple roles sometimes a student, an advisor, an orderly, a son; an extra ordinary opportunity to explore one’s talents. It’s at the chambers I saw between those big ears, multiple roles are done by my senior shaking off every dust of previous one easily and get into next smoothly. Teaching me the basics of court etiquettes to saving from vultures of higher echelons, a camaraderie with multiple facets was brewing. Dictation to drafting to reading to scolding all were making you a better person than yesterday.

Walking past the pillars and busy lanes where you see injustice everywhere and can't pursue the same, one just shrug it off or compromise you start realising this system is not bad its people are not cruel they are looking for hope in every face they meet.

With the baggage of old blocks plastered with hopes, I ascended the steps of abode of judiciary where same verdict is justice and injustice. While walking to the sanctum I saw milady of justice camouflaged in bougainvillea with those unflickering eyes; She moved close and whispered in my ears - Welcome to lawyer’s paradise!

Submitted by:

Mohammed Ilyas

Campus Law Centre, Delhi University