Guns, gutkha and gup-shup

"Kya hoga is desh ka? Ab tak Pakistan, Bangladesh se nipat rahe the, ab Naxal aa gaye," said a visibly worried Dayanand Pandey.

Noida may be far from any Naxal-affected area in the country, but Pandey's knowledge about the problem is sound, and he even has a solution to deal with it. "Sabko pakad kar maarna chahiye, but hamari sarkar mein himmat hi nahi hai."

Pandey is not a security expert. He sells cigarette and gutkha for a livelihood, and spends his entire day away from newspapers and television channels. But he has a keen ear for news and business.

Hailing from northern Bihar, Pandey has the inborn ability, just like any other Bihari, to start and lead a discussion. He gains most of his knowledge while selling tobacco to customers. "The urge to smoke and chew gutkha increases when you discuss the latest news or argue with people. All my knowledge of current affairs comes from people discussing national and other issues outside my shop. And Naxalism is the hottest topic these days," he says animatedly.

Pandey realised the sensitivity of the Naxal menace when he found that 70 per cent of his customers were discussing train hijacks and capital punishments related to Naxals. "Naxalism has to be a hot and troubling national issue. People from all sections of society come to my shop and everyone, be it a graduate or a labourer, seems perturbed by this new kind of militancy in India," he exclaims.u00a0

As Pandey continues his Naxal tirade, he discreetly slips another cigarette in your hand and adds another Rs 5 to your monthly khata. I decided to move before he started making windfall profits. "Sahib, hum bhi aapki hi tarah hain. Naxal aur terrorist nahi hote to aapka akhbaar kaise bikta? Aap kama rahe hain, thoda hum bhi kama lenge," he signed off with his signature yellowed grin.

Anshumanu00a0G Dutta is Principal Correspondent, MiD DAY Delhi