The Blind Spot

He took the same route to office everyday even though it was the longer one. He didn't quite think about why - but there was something that made him not change or try the other one.

He saw the same scene of a man beating or pushing a beggar boy and though it bothered him he never gave it much thought . I mean why would he it wasn't any of his business.

He would reach office and head for his morning chai break and observe the little boy at the dhaba growing thinner by the day and the scolding from the owner only getting louder. He would occasionally hand the boy a packet of biscuits on the sly.

He'd drive home and wait for the guard to open the gate while the guard would kick a sleeping dog or pelt him with stones till the dogs whimpering could be heard in the neighbourhood. After all the guy was only doing his job and it wasn't like it was his pet dog!

The woman who was the help at home would share her troubles with his wife while doing her chores and while what he heard troubled him it really wasn't any of his business.

He'd usually unwind in the evenings chatting with his children and that was the most important part of his day. Today however there was something different about their conversation. His 6 year old son was more quiet than usual and his 8 year old daughter had a sad distant look. He didn't know what to make of it till his wife barged into the room carrying his sons white school shirt. The shirt had blood stains on one shoulder and the children had hidden it in the huge pile of laundry.

After a long chat his daughter now in tears told him of how one of the school staff would beat her brother everyday on some pretext or the other and the children were scared to tell their parents. She even told him about one of their neighbours who worked in the same school and was aware of this brutal beating but did nothing to stop it. His wife by this point was fuming and immediately decided to call the neighbour to confront him.

The expected answer from the other end was a simple one liner - He 's not my son, it really isn't any of my business!