RAM aur Shame

The scene - a group of 43, a theft, and an accusation that the perpetrator(s) is from the group. I am from that group. Sufferers - 15 persons, again, from the group itself. I am one of them. A perfect setting for intra-group camps, cold shoulders, incriminating glares, and an incurable distrust. One of these two can happen - the traitor getting caught; or preventing that perfect setting from materializing any further. We chose the latter.

I don't know about what was right and what was not; what we could have done or what we should have done. All I know is when I smile at anyone from this jinxed group, I get a smile back. Maybe the person whom I smiled at was the real culprit, and may be he is not smiling back, he is in fact laughing his wits out in his head. But what I know is that I have not pointed my finger at an innocent someone.

And what have we got in return for this stance - a ridicule in every possible direct, indirect and in-indirect way; glances and jibes that suggest a pity one shows towards impotency; and not to mention the monetary and academic losses.

"Your class is all messed up, your network is very weak! I am sure, had this happened to your seniors, they would have caught the thief by now"
Messed up huh? From where I see, I see an example of a bunch of guys standing together in a crisis, fighting an urge to shout back at every contemptuous remark and instead absorbing the outburst of one and all. Network weak - yeah, we don't have back-stabbers. And seniors - please feel lucky that this didn't happen to you.

"You're a fearful lot. One of you should have stood up and said - 'lets check everyone's room. If you're clean, you shouldn't object the checking.' The stained guy would have tried to resist this idea"
Mr. James Bond, I don't think anyone would be foolish enough to keep that monty in his own room. The campus is BIG enough. And to be honest, this idea didn't strike us at all. Know why - we don't believe it's one of us. Now, even if that turns out to be one of us, I would very very happy to get disappointed then. I would be happy that this was not my suspicion. I would be happy that I trusted my group by default.

"Things would never be the same for you now. Your academics are going to suffer, you'll probably never even know about the facilities and resources your seniors benefited from, and what's more - your juniors will suffer too."
Why do you think we don't understand the gravity of the situation? What pleasure do you derive from telling such things time and again, with a half-mocking-half-pitying smile?
No one can deny that at least, there are 40 innocent souls in this class, yet if you want to go ahead executing everyone, then fine, DO IT. And what's more - you have already made up your mind to mess with the next 40-something batch. Great!

If someday it gets proved that the guilty was not from this class, know what we will do??
We will forgive you, with the same half-mocking-half-pitying smile, this time on our faces.