“He knows where I am living nowadays.”
“Daniyal refuses to meet him. He thinks you are brainwashing him.”
Atharva scoffed, bitter amusement hot on his face. “What am I supposed to do? Let Daniyal go and live in a rented flat to ‘not brainwash’ him? I know why Qureshi has let Daniyal live with me. He thinks he is sly but others have brains that work too.”
Iram’s eyes widened. “Why did Qureshi let Daniyal live with us?” She thought it was because there was irreparable damage between father and son and even though Daniyal was an adult, Qureshi wanted him to be under a safe, familiar roof.
Atharva’s flint of a gaze hesitated.
“Atharva, is it so that he can keep an eye on us?”
He smiled suddenly — “Daniyal?”
Iram felt stupid to even think that.
“Meer Hasan Qureshi staged a coup against his CM. That news only went out as a rumour. What will he do now to curb that rumour?”
Show to the people of Jammu & Kashmir that the ex-CM is hosting his son in his house in Shimla. That their relationship is just as it used to be. Still family.Iram felt even more stupid for not reading that. She loved Daniyal, and that is why she felt even more affronted on his behalf. Qureshi was using his son as a pawn?
Samar sighed — “Atharva, I don’t want to sound like his advocate but the four of us have to come to the table at some point. The party cannot run like this.”
“I don’t have a seat at the table in Kashmir anymore. Not until I am persona non grata there. As far as HDP is concerned, I am doing what you want me to do. I don’t see what more I can do.”
“You are doing a whole lot of party building here so do not turn it on me.Igave you the base to restart…”
Iram felt her breath stall. Samar stalled too, as usual having said cutting things without thinking them through. Iram knew his nature by now, she saw how he had zero filter when he was angry. And there was so much angst, bitterness, poison inside him that it always came out fizzing. She had been at the receiving end of many of those lashes. But she was not his friend. Things he said hadn’t hit her hard after that first time.
To her husband, though…
“I thank you for the opportunity.”
“Fuck, I did not mean it like that,” Samar sat up, agitated. His eyes came to her, panicked. Then went back to Atharva. “You know I did not mean it like that. This is your party too.”
Atharva nodded. “Try and keep the F word in check now. He is picking up,” he eyed his son, blissfully unaware of the said F word this time.
“I did not mean it, Atharva. I swear I did not. I just need KDP to come together again.”
“I know.”
“We can have the meeting here. You, me, Adil, Zorji and Qureshi. Low level, informal. But things need to start rolling again. We have panchayat elections next year in Kashmir and Ladakh. Party workers need your support and strategy.”
“I thought my MLAs are now Qureshi’s.”
“Don’t act ignorant. MLAs left, but base-level workers are still sympathetic towards you.”
“Listen, I cannot come there. Indefinitely. There is no point in giving false hope to anybody. Also, I don’t want to create more problems for myself or my family by getting involved in anything in Kashmir right now. If I am ordered to remain out of the state, I will make sure I remain out and not give the opposition, the government or the SIT any opportunity to add onto my sentence. I suggest you take Adil for strategising. Make Sonam his deputy. He has good insights and ideas both.”
And what more could be said after that? This was the first time Atharva had openly accepted that this exile was long-lasting. As his wife, she only got to her feet and announced — “Let’s move to the dining table. Daniyal will be home soon, we can start eating then.”
————————————————————
“So?” Iram asked Amaal as they walked down the garden in the bungalow’s backyard. The men were sitting in the hall, lit in rich orange lighting that was diffusing out through the glass windows. She saw them laughing, making some joke at Daniyal’s expense, who was holding Yathaarth on his shoulders, wrestling him down on the nest of pillows Atharva had spread on the floor.
“So what?” Amaal bit into her kulfi stick, following her gaze. “Do you realise you are raising a toddler and a teenager all at once?”
Iram smiled — “I never think about it in those terms. It’s like Daniyal was always here. And he is such a good boy to live with. He has his quirks and his days. But… how to say it? They are all ours too. Atharva and he are so close. Maha also wants to come stay here, you know?”
“Sarah told me. She wants to study hard and go to Dani bhai’s college so she can come live with you guys.”
