Says Shinde, who is a tennis professional and instructor at Massachusetts University in USA, ``when my friend and son came to pick me up from the bus stand, they found that I was the only passenger in the bus. The driver was getting off and I was lying sprawled on the seat.

``They awakened me but I could barely stand. In fact I stumbled in the bus and my friend asked jokingly `are you drunk?' I told him that I had nothing at all to drink. But I was feeling so limp that I could not even hold a polythene bag.

``In fact I could barely walk, so my friend brought the car into the bus compound and helped me to the car. When we reached home he carried me up the stairs but I fell there too. Somehow they managed to put me in the bed and I fell asleep.

When Shinde finally woke from his slumber at 6 p.m. almost 20 hours had gone by. Still, neither he, nor his wife suspected anything wrong with it. It was put down to jet lag and drunkenness. Says Shinde, ``my wife was obviously very angry with me. Then she asked `where's your chain?'

``I still didn't suspect anything. I told her that it must have fallen off on the bed. She looked and it wasn't there. Then she noticed that my ring was missing too. That alarmed me. I asked her to look into my bags for the money and gifts that I brought. They weren't there''.

It was then that Shinde realised that he had been duped by a guy on the bus. Says he, ``when I boarded the bus, this man started chatting me up. He asked me where I was going. I put my bags down and took my seat behind the driver.

``Then there was a traffic jam at Chembur and this man who was sitting behind me came and sat next to me. I found this a bit odd since there were only 17 passengers in the bus, but did'nt give it much thought. At the traffic jam he opened a packet of Britannia Orange cream biscuits and offered me one saying ``Timepass ho jayega.'' Without thinking I ate one. Then he gave me another and I ate it. When he offered me the third biscuit I refused.

``I distinctly remember that it was 9.40 p.m. After that I do not remember anything at all. I slept right upto 6 p.m the next day. When I went to a doctor at Seventh Day Adventists Hospital the next night, my blood pressure was 160 by 110. The doctor told me that I was probably given chloroform which knocks one out immediately''.

Shinde went to Mumbai to lodge his complaint. Says he, ``it was only because I knew somebody at the Commissioner's office that they entertained my complaint. The police are least bothered. I was told that I would get my cash, ring and chain, perfumes, scotch bottles etc., all in three or four days. It's been over a month and there's been no response.

``Mine was the fourth similar case in that month. And that was only the fifteenth day of the month. I think this must be a regular racket where a gang is operating and duping innocent people. I feel that this is not something that the police cannot handle. It's quite easy for them to catch the culprits if they want to. The problem is that they couldn't care less.

Shinde has now given up hope that he will ever get his belongings back. But he feels that if the Maharashtra State Transport keeps a conductor on the bus that will be of some help.``At least he can keep an eye on the passengers. This man walked away with my duty free bag, spent some time cutting my ring (the second one is intact as it could not be cut easily) opened the big bags and took what he wanted, all without anyone even raising an eyelid. Besides passenger safety is something that should be ensured by the authorities. The doctors told me that if I had taken a large dose I'd probably have gone into a coma or even died''.

Luckily, for Shinde, all he lost was just his material possessions.