Guilty or not guilty!

My idea of a police station was that from the movies, with Gandhiji's photos and revolving wooden doors.

Happened to visit a police station today for my sister's passport verification. I must admit that getting into one is a very scary venture. For a person like me, I know when Im sitting there that a blog is waiting to be written.

Met 3 guys there. They were around 10 years old. They were asked to stay back at the station as they were accused of stealing bicycles. We were seated on a bench outside the inspector's room and they were sitting beside us. One of them was crying out loud after a passing constable slapped him hard across the face telling him "3rd time eh". I ask the boy seated beside me.."What did u steal?"..He told me "Nothing. Somebody else stole a bicycle. We were standing there watching the incident, and police arrested us."

A police constable was warning them that if he ever caught them stealing again, that would be it! He told them to work as mechanics or as carpenters or simply go to school. He told them not to steal from the places they worked. He also told them things like this is not the place for young boys like you!

Helpless as I was, I also realized that it is unfair to blame those kids. I dont know if they were guilty of the crime or not. But picture this, wat if they werent, does it really make a difference. They would still be sitting in police stations with nobody to bail them out. Y? Coz they belong to nobody. Who cares for them? Surviving each day in itself is a challenge!