Honest auto driver returns Rs 4 lakh, gold

Hyderabad, Feb 20 (INN): For all those who claim that corruption, dishonesty, usury and all such vices have relegated goodness and purity to the background there is still proof that human beings are inherently honest. This was amply proved by an auto-rickshaw driver on Sunday when he returned Rs 4 lakh in cash and five tolas of gold to a passenger which had been left behind in his auto.

Muslim Ali, a resident of Yakutpura could not believe his eyes when he saw the contents of the two bags left behind by a passenger who he had dropped at Kishanbagh on Saturday. After dropping off the woman, later identified as Syeda Hasna Ashraf, at Kishanbagh, Muslim Ali turned around and found the two bags. He looked for the woman but in vain, since she had vanished in the labyrinthine lanes of Kishanbagh.

Curiosity made him open the bags and he was astounded to see the money and gold before his eyes. Muslim Ali immediately telephoned his two brothers who work in the police department and told them about the treasure. His brothers, Syed Hasham Ali and Syed Abid Ali immediately told him to come home and they would meet. At the meeting, the brothers decided to find out if any complaint had been made in any police stations in the Old City.

Meanwhile, Husna Ashraf filed a complaint with the Bahadurpura police that her bags were missing. On their part, the brothers began doing rounds of the police stations, and then released advertisements in the local television channels asking the owner of the property to come forward, identify and take it back. Very soon, a distraught Hasna Ashraf heard of the news and made her way to the Dabeerpura police station where she identified her belongings in front of Inspector Prasanna Kumar.

Asked about the money, Husna Ashraf said that it was the money collected through the years for her daughter's marriage which had been fixed for the near future. She also revealed that she had been thinking of the wedding preparations and had left the bags behind. Husna Ashraf also said that she had given up hopes of finding the money, especially after her relatives also expressed similar doubts.

She said that she kept praying that human goodness would prevail and her bags would be returned since they contained the fruits of her family's hard work. Blessing the auto driver, she gave him Rs 10,000 as a reward. Meanwhile Muslim Ali said that the misconception that all auto drivers are thieves has been proved wrong. He said that he works to eke out a honest living and has just done his duty.

Inspector Prasanna Kumar, praising Muslim Ali, said that such acts give everyone hope that all is not dark and gloomy with the world. He said that he has apprised Commissioner of Police AK Khan of the good deed of the auto driver and expressed confidence that the police department would also reward him.