Pawn in my hands

Belliappa was 55 in 1988 when he had a car accident. There was no major damage, except a broken arm. But when in hospital, surrounded by his only sister Devaki and his brother Jappu, something occurred to him. He realized then that he was all alone, and being unmarried, with no kids, he would have nobody to look after him when he got old. Belliappa was a brilliant criminal lawyer, with a booming practice in Bangalore. He was the eldest of three, his sister Devaki was three year younger had two kids, one son – Rahul and one daughter Kaveri. His younger brother Jappu had two daughters – Dechu and Deepa. Over the years he had amassed a considerable fortune, invested shrewdly in property and shares.

Lying in bed in the hospital, see his brother and sister fuss over him in the hospital, a plan formed in his head. While pretending to be under heavy painkillers, he ranted in his sleep that he would only leave his money to the family member who looked after him.

For the next 20 years, Belliappa enjoyed the love and attention of his family. Both his brother and sister were determined that their kids would inherit the bulk of his estate. His only nephew Rahul, would visit him every day. Driving him from his doctors appointment, to the club in the evening and also to buy his provisions. Jappu’s daughters, would try and visit him every month, and call him every week, and literally thrust their children down his throat. Belliappa enjoyed all the attention, playing along innocently.

Then in Jan of 2010 he died. Suffering a massive stroke, he slipped into a coma, and never recovered. The family mourned his passing. On the 15th day of his passing, the executor of his will contacted the family and asked them to gather in his office at Brigade Road. His brother Jappu, his two daughters Dechu and Deepa and their respective spouses were present. So was his sister Devaki, her husband, her son Rahul and his wife present. The only person missing was Kaveri his niece. She had moved to Mumbai in 1992. Got into theatre and basically would have nothing to do with the family. She was by Coorg standards not very successful, but she was very happy. She had come down for the funeral, stayed for the puja’s and left.

The executor started to read out the will. In his monotonous voice, he divided up the estate, and described each property. He then mentioned all the monies in various accounts, he also mentioned the sale of the shares and the monies accrued thereof. Some of the money had been willed to the Coorg Education trust, some to other charities. The lawyer then droned about the caveat in the will, that if any body decided to contest the will, they would be counter sued by the executor. The will was the final testament and Belliappa had written this with all his faculties being sane and intact. The build up to the last part was too much for the family, who by now were out of their seats, bursting with anticipation.

The executor then started reading the last part of the will “ I, Belliappa have left the bulk of my estate to my niece Kaveri, the reason I did this is because she is the only member of my family who did not have a vested interest in my money. Greed is not a quality one admires."