“Don’t tell me you were ok meeting a KDP leader in broad daylight in a public place.”
Rashid Ali chuckled, glancing at the cab. Samar eyed it too — “He is a trusted friend. Rest assured.”
“You tell me what is it that you brought a trusted cab driver to this silent road?”
Samar pushed his hands behind his back. “Something is happening at Awaami, something against Atharva Kaul.”
“And you are close enough to Sayyid Butt to figure it out.”
Samar’s brows rose.
“What?” Rashid Ali smiled. “I am still the President. I know what goes on under my nose.”
“Then you also know what’s going on about Atharva Kaul.”
“And I would share with you why?”
“Because you don’t like Sayyid Butt and Sufiyaan Sheikh.”
“You are their friend right now. Who is to say you won’t run to them with this little whisper?”
“What more can they do to you?”
Rashid Ali went silent.
“If, on the other hand,” Samar offered, “you help me figure this out, you may be looking at a renewed chance at helming your party.”
“This election is Sufiyaan’s. There is no disputing that.”
“The voter turnout in Kashmir was 20% higher. And whenever voter turnout has risen sharply like this, the sitting government has tumbled.”
Rashid Ali stared at him, clearly conflicted.
“I don’t know the details,” he said, finally. “But everything about Mohsin’s accident has been collated in the last week. They even ordered dossiers on Mohsin’s murder’s media reporting and PR from our office.”
“What can it be?”
“My guess is that they are building out media strategies around Mohsin’s death.”
“But that topic is old. Sympathies have been cashed in…” Samar stopped talking.Unless, they are planning to resurrect it. Legal documents with Atharva’s name. Case? To be filed?
“Anything else you can think of?”
Rashid Ali shook his head.
————————————————————
Samar reached the wedding in time for the signing of papers. The celebration went on around him while he worked to wiggle his fingers through the police contacts where none existed anymore. Faris had been the front before. He wasn’t picking up his phone now. Samar sent out all the information he had collected from Rashid Ali. Still no response from Faris.
Evening was falling when his phone rang.
“Hello?”
“It’s me.”
“Tell me.”
“You were right. They are catching hold of Atharva in Mohsin Sheikh’s murder case. The plan is to lift him from his house today or tomorrow. The courts will be closed for the weekend.”
