What is not seen: the case of P.A Babbar

Frederic Bastiat in his influential article “What is seen and what is not seen” describes how often we tend to assume that one action in a social system has a one given, apparent consequence, where it might really have many; all antithetical to each other.

In fact we might think of the idea of “Looking at the unseen”, as a narrative building process: one that requires constant addition. And really, ‘what is not seen’ is really a matter of perspective, and the more the people, the more the perspectives. It is into this sequestered narrative that I would like to fit certain observations with regard to the Commonwealth Games.

My observations deal with how the Games have affected the fortunes of Property Agent Bunty Babbar. P.A Babbar celebrated the Common Wealth games by getting married again, buying himself a new Honda Jazz and a Yamaha R15. Babbarji works in North Delhi Colony called Vijaynagar, a virtual Bohemia, and home like no other for most North Campus Delhi University students.

The colony itself is composed of ramshackle flats piled up, forming two long rows, on either side of a rather filthy, puddle-ridden road. The owners of these flats, mostly ageing first generation, or jobless second generation 1947 immigrants have welcomed the students into their lives, hearts and pockets; who but Delhi University students would find in Vijaynagar the serenity of some enchanting, mystical land.

There are of course the college hostels, for those addicted to routine, college attendance and other such trifling formalities. The hostels in themselves however for all these years saved Vijaynagar from the reality of overpopulation. However with the decision of the Delhi government and the respective college authorities to fling the students out of their hostels to make space for whosoever might require it during the games, the less bohemian students have been forced to find a home in Vijaynagar as well. And so, demand supply etc: the prices of flats in Vijaynagar have gone up.

This is where P.A Babbar comes in. P.A Babbar with much wily, tongue twisting connivance has established a monopoly over the property dealing business in Vijaynagar, and as a middleman he is indispensable. What he actually does confounds me, but I know you need him around when you take a flat. And P.A Babbar for his indefinable contributions takes half the flat’s rent as commission. Now the surge in demand for flats in Vijaynagar caused by the hostel evictions, has benefited both Babbarji and the flat-owners who together have doubled the flat rates. The benefit from such a hike will be short lived for the owners however, since most of the uptight hostel types will scramble back to the secure confines of hostel life, post the games.

This inevitably will mean a drastic drop in the prices, benefiting in turn the Bohemian college crowd, who scarcely have the money to deal with the price rise anyway. They will no doubt smoke a fag of relief.

So, the owners profit before the games and the bohemians and hostel crowd fid their own respective abodes post the games. So what about P.A Babbar? Well now we can understand why he celebrated the common wealth games coming to Delhi: he makes a double commission, first on the hostel based surge before the games and then again on reoccupying those houses post the games.

Thus where he usually voices a loud dissidence against the Delhi government, he is known today to get quite acrimonious with anyone who dares to challenge the beneficence of Suresh Kalmadi and Sheila Dikshit.

Such is my simple addition to the narrative of the unseen, and as far as how ‘we’, the economy and society benefit from Babbarji’s new found affluence: I wouldn’t know but would dare you to question his functionality in the environs of Vijaynagar and walk out unscathed.