E-Paper
This Delhi man risked his life for a stranger in distress
Driving non-stop for 24 hours, Hemant Bhayana helped a stranger who wanted to perform the last rites of his mother
How many of us would put our lives in danger just to fulfil a promise made to a stranger ? Delhi businessman Hemant Bhayana drove his car non-stop, covering about 1326 km in 24 hours from Delhi to Bhagalpur, Bihar to help a migrant in distress. He wanted to ensure that Tipu Yadav, a 19-year-old daily wager, attends his mother’s cremation.
Tipu’s mother had died a tragic death after getting trapped into a threshing machine. Some thoughtless relatives had sent Tipu extremely distressing pictures of his mother’s body which has caused him a nervous breakdown. The boy has stopped eating completely and he was crying inconsolably. He somehow wanted to reach his village in time to be able to cremate his mother’s body, but it seemed impossible due to the nationwide lockdown in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Hemant’s sister, Delhi based activist Yogita Bhayana managed to get a permit letter from the government for Tipu to travel via roadways from Delhi to Bihar. But no one was willing to take up the highly arduous and risky journey to drive Tipu all the way home during the lockdown. The administration could not provide them a vehicle and a driver to carry out the mission. But Yogita was adamant to send Tipu home to be able to perform the last rites of his mother and share his old and ailing father’s grief.
That’s when Hemant, 40, volunteered to drive all the way in his sister’s car along with Tipu and two more daily wage earners from Bhagalpur. He took along his friend Rohit Kumar to help him in this unique mission. “I can’t bear to see any one in pain…Tipu’s agony left me perturbed…there’s was boy in front of me crying because his mother had met such a horrific death, and he was away from his father. I just had to help him,” he says.
Covering a distance of around 1,326 km in almost 24 hours in his sister’s car, Hemant dropped Tipu and his friends to Bhagalpur, and after resting for just a few hours, started his journey back to Delhi. By the time he reached home, he could barely stand. “I was extremely exhausted, but the peace and satisfaction that I got after fulfilling this task made up for everything,” he says.
But there were a few sights that he witnessed during this journey that torment him even now. “As I drove through Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, I saw so many dead bodies of stray dogs, who apparently could not survive due to starvation. I could do nothing about that. I hope people come forward and ensure that no more voiceless beings bear the brunt of the lockdown,” says the dog lover who feeds stray dogs daily in Model Town.
It’s been almost eighteen days that Hemant returned from Bihar but he has kept in touch with Tipu over phone. A few days ago, Tipu informed him he is trying his best to cope up with the tragic loss. He is keeping himself busy by working in the fields, helping his father cut wheat. Tipu says he can’t thank Hemant enough, for what he did for him. The two have made a unique bond, one that reinstates our faith in humanity.
