CHALO KASHMIR

About eight to ten
days back I was on my morning walk when I saw a luxury bus standing near the
joggers’ park. To my surprise I saw a few CA friends in the bus      – Shah, Mehta,
Desai, Joshi, Kamat, Agarwal!

I wondered where all
of them were going together.

I asked: Are Ranchhodbhai, where are all of you going?

Shah: Kashmir!

I: Some seminar? Or RRC? But who has organised RRC in this tax and
audit season?

Shah: No RRC. No conference. Just on a visit.

I was even more
shocked. All CAs leaving in the month of August for a visit to Kashmir!?
Surely, they were crazy!

Q: You mean, there are all CAs in the bus?

A: No, only eight to ten of us.

Q: But what makes you visit Kashmir all of a sudden?

A: Now Article 370 is deleted.

Q: So what? How does it matter to us?

A: We are exploring business and professional opportunities there.

Q: (CAs becoming so proactive was another surprise to me!)

I said, but the
situation is not normal there. Terrorists are still active.

A: We are now not afraid of terrorists. We don’t mind fighting with
them!

I could not believe
what I was hearing! I checked up whether I was in a dream! A chartered
accountant – making such a bold and courageous statement? In my dictionary, the
antonym of CA was ‘a courageous person’.

Q: But why are you leaving the established things over here?

A: Kya settled hai?

Every year, New
Law! New Tax! New Regulation! New Accounting Standard! New Notice! New Penalty!
New Authority!

We felt the
terrorism by guns and bombs is much less disastrous than the tax and other
regulators’ terrorism over here!

Q: Oh! But life will be difficult there!

A: Idhar bhi kaunsa comfort hai? CA’s life is the most
miserable one! No one respects him. No one cares for him!

Q: Why? You have your own profession!

A: Own profession gaya paani mein! Kaun hamari sunata hai? We
have bosses everywhere and we are answerable to all. Ghar me biwi! In
office, our staff, our articles, clients – all are our bosses! You need to be
in their good books, always.

And in Government
Departments, the less said the better! As for the Government, you are only a
slave!

I saw considerable
truth in what they were saying. I wished I could join them; but as a typical CA
I lacked the courage to make up my mind!

I wished them good
luck, bid farewell to them and came back envying them.

 But just the day
before yesterday, I met Mr. Shah. He said they are now in a dilemma because the
first two buildings they saw there were the Income tax Office and the GST
office!

And the report was
that even the terrorists were afraid of attacking those two buildings!