Born in bank queue, Khazanchi gets gift from Akhilesh
KANPUR: Less than a month into demonetisation last year, a widow Sarvesha Devi was waiting for her turn since five hours in a bank queue of nearly 500 people in Jhinjhak area of Kanpur Dehat on December 2 when she went into labour.
Her mother Shashi Devi took her to a corner where she delivered a boy. He was named Khazanchi (meaning cashier) as his mother had been waiting to see the cashier of Jhinjhak branch of the Punjab National Bank to withdraw her widow pension.
Former chief minister and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav narrated the story of Khazanchi Nath in most of his public meetings in the run-up to the UP assembly elections turning him almost a mascot of the hardships people faced during demonetisation. He still remembers the boy and his family.
Not losing touch with the boy, Akhilesh on Thursday sent Rs 10,000 to the family with the message that he would personally visit them to celebrate his birthday. Taking a dig at the Centre over demonetisation, Akhilesh on Wednesday tweeted: “Khanzachi’s mother doesn’t know what black money is. We cannot celebrate demonetisation but for sure will celebrate the birthday of Khazanchi”.
Chairman of Jhinjhak nagar panchayat Raj Kumar Yadav got a call from Akhilesh, who enquired about Khazanchi and asked him to visit the family in Jogidera in Jhinjhak area of Kanpur Dehat and hand over Rs 10,000 in cash.
Raj Kumar met the family on Thursday and provided financial relief to Sarvesha, who is rearing four children. The eldest child Priti is suffering from tuberculosis.
As Akhilesh had announced Rs 2 lakh each to the families of people who died in bank queues, he specially called Sarvesha to Lucknow with Khazanchi and gave them a cheque.
Khazanchi’s family belongs to the tribe of snake-charmers and his father Aareshwar had died of tuberculosis six months before his birth.
Living in abject poverty, the illness and untimely death of Sarvesha’s husband left the family in heavy debt. Sarvesha said Rs 80,000 of the amount given by the then government was spent on repayment of debts.
“After my husband’s death, his brother Anil Nath threw us out of the house. I am living with my mother and surviving on widow pension,” she said.
Sarvesha has been allotted a house under the Ram Manohar Lohia housing scheme and expects to move there shortly.
“My only worry is that my children get good education and jobs. I don’t want them to endure poverty,” she said.
“I spent some time with Khazanchi. The boy smiles a lot. I will brief the party president about the problems that the family is facing,” Raj Kumar said