Tale of a Territorial Thief
Author: Mrinmoy Chakraborty
Publisher: K.K. Publications
Published: 2022-03-06
Total Pages: 106
ISBN-13:
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Thieves were not necessarily looked down upon in India as villains or parasites. In this country, besides mythological thieves, there were legendary thieves who are alive in collective and individual memory. In the Barak Valley region of Assam there was the concept of baadi rakhal, or the protector of the household, which happened to be a snake. The venomous snake was religiously worshipped and believed to be the protector of the household from all danger! Similarly, almost all villages had their own and well-known thief, who would punish the disloyal in the locality by breaking into his house and protect the loyal households from any other burglar from outside or inside the village. He was duly revered as a hero and substantially compensated. The great thieves of that time inflicted no harm to the weak and poor and enjoyed the power and prestige as admissible to a person who would practice a respectable profession. Different localities in that region had many such hero thieves, one at a time in a particular territory. Here is a story of such a well-known thief.