Lost in the din over the Bihar elections is the story of 27-year-old IIM graduate Manjunathan Shanmugham killed for doing his duty. As a manager with the Indian Oil Corporation, he ordered the shutdown of an IOC petrol pump in Lakhimpur Kheri—where he was posted—for allegedly selling adulterated fuel.

Over the past three months, Manjunathan had shut down two IOC dealer petrol pumps in Lakhimpur for selling adulterated fuel.

His friends and batchmates have sent several emails to The Indian Express drawing parallels with the murder of Satyendra Dubey—the IIT engineer and NHAI official who was killed in Gaya after he complained of corruption on the Golden Quadrilateral.

For a grieving father, that’s little consolation.

Especially, when his son had told him about the risks, the mafia, and the father had advised him “to let go of some things” because he was all alone.

Having not heard from his son for three days, at around 9 pm last Saturday, the father, M Shanmughan, a design manager with BEML in Kolar Gold Fields, sent an SMS: ‘‘How are you?’’

There was no reply.

For, that evening, Manjunathan was beaten up and then riddled with at least six bullets. His body was found in the backseat of his own car. At the wheel, were two employees of the petrol pump, on their way to dispose of the body. Both were arrested on Saturday and the main accused, pump-owner Monu Mittal, was held today along with four others.

On Sunday, at a family function in Chennai, Shanmughan got a call saying his son had been shot.

Manjunathan, an engineering graduate from JSS Engineering College, Mysore, and an MBA from IIM, Lucknow had ordered the sealing of the pump for selling adulterated fuel. But a month later, the pump started operating again, prompting him to conduct a surprise raid. It was during the raid that he was murdered, say UP police.

“He was killed for doing his duty,’’ said a tearful Shanmughan after the cremation. ‘‘He told me many times that he was working in an area with many mafia gangs and that anything could happen to him. I never thought it could happen,’’ he said, fighting to regain his composure. ‘‘He used to tell me about the lack of proper controlling systems and official support when it came to stopping adulteration and booking wrongdoers in UP. He said it is a lawless world and for survival, one has to keep mum even if there are irregularities,’’ said Shanmughan. ‘‘He wanted the dealers to follow all norms. I used to tell him ‘you are alone, don’t get worked up, let some things go’. He said he was responsible to his company and its sales... I told him to come back home. But he said he loved the challenge.’’

The family resides in Kolar, 90 km from Bangalore. He was the eldest of three children. ‘‘He financed all his education himself through loans,’’ said the distraught father.

Manjunathan’s death has shocked and outraged all those who knew him. ‘‘He was such a free spirit. He had no enemies and yet he suffered such a heinous fate. Just because he was doing his duty,’’ his IIM classmate Sunit Sapra wrote in an e-mail to The Indian Express. ‘‘The case is no less than the killing of Satyendra Dubey. The criminals must be brought to justice and Manju’s sacrifice must be given the respect it deserves,’’ he wrote.

For Manjunathan’s professor at IIM-L, Debashis Chatterjee, it’s a personal loss. ‘‘He was not our typical 8-point brilliant student... but he was a go-getter, very courageous and hardworking. He used to come to me at 4 am to study... we all will miss him,’’ he said. Chatterjee plans to get in touch with as many alumni as possible to decide on a course of action. ‘‘We shall not let him vanish quietly into the night,’’ he said. Messages from his batchmates are pouring in.

‘‘He would always keep his mind on the silver lining of a dark cloud, always laughing and joking around. You fought the odds real hard. Goodbye Machan,’’ wrote Karthik Parthasarathy, IIM-L Batch of 2003. ‘‘He was the booming voice of 3.4, our campus band. He sang from the bottom of his heart, and with an infectious enthusiasm. One of those singers who made the listeners feel like singing along, or at least clap in tune. Bye Machan,’’ wrote Gaurav Sabnis, IIM-L batch of 2003. Machan is what they used to call Manjunathan, the singer from Karnataka. ‘‘At Mysore, they had a singing contest where girls dropped flowers to vote for the best singer, it was my son who won,’’ said Shanmughan, fighting his tears.

GEORGE CARLIN'S VIEW ON AGING

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids?  If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions. "How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!"  You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five!

That's the key.

You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead. "How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!"   You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16!

And then the greatest day of your life . . . you become 21.Even the words sound like a ceremony . . . YOU BECOME 21....YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk. He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're just a sour-dumpling.  What's wrong?  What's changed?  You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40.  Whoa!  Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away!

Before you know it, you REACH 50 . . . and your dreams are gone. But wait!!!  You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!  So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60. You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70!

After that, it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!  You get into your 80s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime.

And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards.  "I was JUST 92."  Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!"

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

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i was angry that puneet had not listened my entire array of "boastful attitude";abt how i turned around something that was going to bomb to something wonderful later on;atleast the feeling of having done an event almost singlehandedly.anyways cant help hiding the excitement;when it got over and somehow puneet became victim to my "SELF APPLAUSE".just got a wee bit carried away.

right now i feel like an ideal candidatefor "OUT OF THE BOX" thinking;primarily beacuse i feel all boxed in;but i admire the boxer, the pugilist who can still see through that already fatigued eyes;chances of FINDING HIS OWN; so i say tough times;not much to look forward to except making so many look like fools of the first order and in way making oneself the GREATEST.

so the need to rejuvenate and if this week fails the test;thn probably i might need for more thn hope to see something HOPEFUL.so GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!.

there are places i want to go;but seems like i have to sit tight and hold onto this zoo like ambience.hmm... well i do look forward to changes that can give me a breakthrough;i dont know when it will come ;but my fair bit of gut feeling has it that there can be no looking back when there is something to look forwartd to;seems optimistic bullshitting;but u got to talk urself ;keep the system inside running;stagnant waters thats kochi interms of its blocked drainage system and no parking roads with vehicles parked occupying half the space. the images i have put on display looks less of POSED for pics than real moods itself.sometimes u can never say ur real self from the pics.WHO WANTS TO DIE YOUNG;BUT JAMES DEAN DID;fair enough each one gets a chance to be there among the gods;i am ALREADY IN GODS OWN country

today morning;woke up with my stomach boiling.it was wht i call yesterday effect.i just gave in to a suggestion frm my colleague that brandy with pepper is a gud medicine for cold.after three pegs ;i felt i was the only one capable of driving my vehicle.sane! i thought because when in the last week of dec 04; i had an accident;the overwhelming feling was , i had done it under the influence of alcohol. had dosa after drinks and packed off.dropped my friend safely; reached home safe too.mother called;asked her to call in the morning;called in the morning;told her i have to hurry for office and NOW THAT I AM IN THE OFFICE ;I WONDER WHERE I HAVE TO GO.

well the week has neared the end;LOOKING BACK;was a struggle; came through without too many bruises;scars they will be there;but then it reminds;IT WASNT THT EASY. got my vehicle back;was lying in the dumps just like me for more than a week;travelling has become a lot easier.MY CD shops refused to part with any more CDs;raid being conducted;they decided to restrain.so gave me some breathing space.my room is in chaos;i need to pick up the broom and sweep it as if was the last time i am doing it.somebody told me u can wish HAAPY NEW YR all january;i wondered in tht case wht abt APRIL FOOL.so without fooling myself that some semblance of BALANCE has been restored;i am back and hope to be BACK AT MY BEST.

i think it was a good suggestion by puneet ;not to hold matters too close to ur heart.it will hurt and it hurts.so i have come to believe that "ONLY GUD" things can happen to you and if there is something that is meant to HAPPEN to u; it will hapen;i call it the more OPTIMISTIC version of MURPHY'S LAW. so the usual scheme of things have taken centrestage.movies and plots will happen;but when ;i might never be in a position to answer.basically after talking to puneet and abhijit;i felt LETS GET ON. so i will allow enough water to flow under the bridge;damn it wait...

just finished talking to puneet;i dont knw whether it was gud idea talking to him;as always i made myself looked like the non commital person.the best part was sharing everything and anything abt "RAINCOAT".he told me to write more often;keep up the momentum.i guess the way i started the conversation;i think i diluted the very idea of doing something different.i did feel he took the idea seriously of "doing away "with the job and doing something different.but wht a dampener;it proved;i was trying to get him "introduced" to the subject of RAINCOAT.i feel this place doesnt offer u anything;i understand it is GODS OWN COUNTRY;maybe because everything is left to god to propose and dispose.
puneet was talking abt the bill i might have piled up.but then the greater price i have to pay is to realise the objectives i have in mind.he told me abt being in  tht"BACKGROUND" or FILM INSTITUTE;but then i ask how many graduates tht institute produced have made their mark.tht might seeem likie to excuse for me, not to commit to LEARNING involved or more specifically years involved; i want to do it quick;to get it going;but sadly I HAVENT MOVED A INCH.

today it is going to be hectic;why no time for explanationno time to stop and ponderlive life in the fast lanethats how it is going to befrm now on and on...work hard;wipe out thatlast drop of sweatonly to trickle down the eyebrowto blur those eyes;already fatigued.