Hong stopped. These people were pretending not to understand. They were looking to trap him with his own words. Could he expect justice from these people? Was there any use of reasoning with these people? Hong looked at them and tried again.

‘I did not mean to say that, sir. But one thing is true, before the war we really lived in comfort. If the war had not happened, we would not have come here. No one would have been able to humiliate us. Before the war, we lived in peace and happiness in India. At least there was no famine, no meetings were held in the evenings and –’ Hong stopped midway.

The hall fell eerily silent. The leaders were shocked at the man’s unbelievable insolence.

‘Now, we are always at fault. We have lost many things, sir. Half of our people are left behind in India. Our lives are shattered forever. The government has given us houses to stay in, land to cultivate and rice to eat. We are grateful to the government, sir. We have not occupied anyone’s land. We have not snatched food from any one’s share. Please believe us sir, if we had any other way, we would not have troubled you. We would have gone away from this country too,’ Hong’s voice was becoming choked.

The local people fell silent. Tears brimmed in the eyes of the people who had come from India. Only one leader flared up.

‘Where would you have gone? To India?’

‘I don’t know, sir.’

‘Don’t you know? We know. We are observing. We have been observing from the time you arrived from India. You don’t have any faith in our great Chairman Mao. You don’t have any loyalty towards the People’s Republic of China, too.’

‘We want to stay loyal, sir. You have provided us with shelter. You can do whatever you want with us.’

‘Your behaviour is suspicious. We have information; you always try to provoke others by talking this way. Who has sent you here? Who has deputed you?’

‘Kindly don’t doubt our honesty, sir. No one has sent us.’

‘Come over here. You have to apologize, for expressing no confidence in Great Chairman Mao and Communist China. You have to accept punishment for the anti-revolutionary activities that you have been carrying on, living as a refugee.’

After standing still for a while, Hong went forward resolutely. As soon as he reached the dais, one of the leaders punched him hard and growled at him.

‘Who has sent you? Under whose direction are you sowing seeds of rebellion amongst the people? Under whose direction are you conducting all these anti-revolutionary activities?’

Two more officials started thrashing him.

‘Don’t beat him. Please don’t. I beg of you,’ Hong’s mother cried out. So did his father.