Kashi Annachikum The trouble for Burland family members also started in the Harbor Lodman Association elections. Ten years ago, when both brother and sister were united, usually the person who showed the hand of the great Burland would contest the union elections. Someone from Kasi Annachi’s men will petition to contest.
Kasi Annachi is also a big man in maritime business. He has influence over the people of his community. The people of their community were mostly exporting pulses, pulses, pulses, blackcurrant, pepper and groundnut oil to foreign countries. At that time, Kashi Annachi’s community members had decided to escort him into the harbour. For that they spent money like water. They thought that if the sea and the harbor came under Annachi’s control, there would be no difficulty in getting their goods in and out.
Annachi also showered money on the Harper Loduman family. Raleigh cycle, smooth Malaysia shirts, Singaporean sarees, tin powder, movie tickets with family, Torino and pubs during breaks. When some people were unable to replace the coconut roof of the house, he even helped them by giving them a red elephant shell. Thus, Kashi Annachi’s money spent and his thoughts were not wasted. In the same year, Tuticorin sea and port came under Annachi’s control from Burland brothers.
Everyone wondered why Kasi Annachi had spent so much on an ordinary Harbor Loadmen’s Association election. But the Burlands and Annachi know… Customs officers and loadmen are the only ones who have the right to handle any cargo at this port and to have unrestricted access to the loading docks. They can do whatever they want. Any cargo can be sent and unloaded in the transit shed if they please. They can deduct weight for wharfage charges, add when needed, write off existing cargo, account for non-existent cargo… anything.
All the loadmen here are always in touch with the people at Bombay port. They are mostly Tamil people who have left here. Especially those who left from Tuticorin Harbour. When Hazimastan had the Bombay port in his hands, Draviyam Annachi, who was doing business with him, asked Burland for help. It was Burland who sent a hundred and sochum of those who were working at Tuticorin port to Bombay port as the first installment. In the next ten years that number crossed five hundred. Many people started staying there as families in the areas around the port. In this way, the cargo loading and unloading work of these two ports came to the hands of Tamil people. Especially for the people of Tuticorin.
Within the next few months of Kashi Annachi’s possession of the port, his export and import business began to yield profits. He started buying and selling palm oil as a shipper at a cheap price. Palm oil was available at less than half the price of edible oils that were being sold till then. It turned out to be a boon for the middle class, the poor and the small hoteliers. Within a couple of months, most of the ships calling at Tuticorin port were palm oil ships carrying Annachi cargo. Annachi’s influence began to increase manifold.
Annachi got a seat in the assembly elections held in the same year. Kasi Annachi became the ruling party MLA of Thoothukudi after winning a huge majority of votes. Annachi opened his ship cargo booking office on a grand scale in the same Ceylon Office Street as Burland family’s export office. All the goods of his community went abroad through his company. A person who initially booked a low rent, increased the booking price and wharfage commission within a few days to deal with the party, position and amenities. Due to this, Annachi’s community members began to lament that they had made Annachi a big man unnecessarily. But Annachi’s flag flew high at Tuticorin harbour.
At the age of forty-five, Annachi’s second marriage was to Padma, a classmate of his eleventh grade daughter, Chitra. The little girl who lived in the next street used to go to school with Annachi’s daughter in a Blazer every day.
That is a separate story. One day, news came that Annachi’s mother-in-law in Vembari had taken a turn for the worse. At midnight Kashi Annachi’s wife and daughter left in a pleasure car with the driver. There is no one at home. The next morning, seeing Padma coming to Annachi’s house to go to school as usual, Kashi Annachi, distraught, let her in and locked the door.
No one outside heard Padma’s cries and pleas that erupted inside the rooms of the big house. Annachi hunted for the little girl’s body until that afternoon. Inside the rooms of a deserted house, Padma was throbbing like a sparrow whose nest had fallen down. Kashi Annachi, overcome with lust and intoxication, had knocked her down with his heavy body.
When Kashi Annachi’s wife and daughter returned from Vembar, the girl’s family, who were standing at the door, cried and appealed to his wife. Annachi lets down the thunder saying that he will tie Padma as the second string. No one had the courage to raise a voice or plead against him. They begged to be given a child to a man who was four years older than Betha’s father. Padma, who was lying paralyzed and paralyzed with tears, got up and sent them away saying, “You go… I will stay here.” After a few days of everyone staring at her in shock, Padma formally became a siddhi to her classmate Chitra.
Although it was a cruel marriage, in a few months Padma had changed completely, buttoning Annachi’s shirt, rubbing oil on his head, serving food with a smiling face, and offering her body to him. Initially it was an unbearable shock to Annachi’s first wife and daughter Chitra. More than that, every time Kashi Annachi saw her, he got rid of his guilt and faced it with a sort of horror. However, in the case of Padma, the entire Tuticorin was jealous and irritated with Annachi.
All the small booking offices on Ceylon Office Street started emptying. On all sides flew the imperial flag of Kasi Annachi. Only the Burlands resisted because of their old traditions. Since the Port Loadmen’s Association was in the hands of Kazi Annachi, the law was what he said and the price was what he set in terms of cargo acceptance wages, unloading wages and ship hire. As a result, they deliberately raised the wages of Burland’s canoes. They kept the canoes in the ‘Perth’ area for a long time despite paying more.
The basic integrity and commercial integrity of this industry is to deliver goods at the right time and to the right place without any damage. Samudram came up with a plan in which one of the Burlands or Annachi should set up shop on Ceylon Office Street. Annachi’s booking goods are mostly grains, pulses, blackcurrant and pepper. In all the ships to which his cargo ships went, he loaded two bags of field mice without anyone’s knowledge through some loadmen who were loyal to the Burlands.
Within hours of a ship or canoe moving out to sea, the hungry field rats come out tearing the shells with their teeth. According to the plan laid by Samudram, all the mice showed their work. Kashi Annachi’s cargo was piled up on the side of the transit shed like rat-bitten goods. Due to this, Kashi Annachi’s influence began to decline among the people of his community whose business was bad. In the ensuing assembly elections, Kashi Annachi’s own community rallied and worked against him. Kasi Annachi was defeated. The Loduman Society left his hand. Kashi Annachi’s flagpole began to break on the beach.
(Enmity grows…)