Hunger, Exhaustion, Desperation: Behind A Son's Cry At Corridor Of Power

Two days ago, a short, shaky video from the Indore Collectorate tore through social media timelines, leaving many unsettled. In it, a young man stands in the middle of the government corridor, his voice breaking, his words tumbling out in anger and despair. Beside him, his frail, visually impaired mother tries to hold him back, her hands trembling not in protest, but in fear that her son's pain might invite more trouble than relief.

The young man was Dinesh Prajapati.

"Public hearings happen every Tuesday," he shouted through tears. "Tuesday comes only once a week. I've come on many Tuesdays. No one listens to the poor." His voice echoed against government walls that have heard countless petitions.

In a moment that pierced through hearts, Prajapati tried to snatch the documents from his mother's bag, threatening to tear those up right there in the Collectorate. His mother pleaded with him to stop. She is a widow and cannot see properly. And she depends on a pension that had been on hold for a year.

"My father is dead. My mother can't see," Prajapati cried in the video. "If the Collector won't listen to the poor, then what are these public hearings for?"

That cry--raw, unfiltered, and desperate--was not scripted. It was the sound of hunger, exhaustion, and a year-long wait collapsing into one unbearable moment.

When NDTV tracked Prajapati down at his modest rented home in Karma Colony, Indore, his voice was calmer, but the fatigue remained.

"I went to the Collector's office because my mother's pension had been stopped for one year," he said quietly. "They said the KYC wasn't done. For a year, I went to the municipal corporation, zonal office, Collectorate... everywhere. We were hungry and thirsty that day. We stood in line for three to four hours. When the Collector passed by and didn't listen, I broke down."

Prajapati earns his living through odd jobs and daily labour. His family lives in a rented house. His mother's widow pension of Rs 7,200 was not just money; it was survival. After the incident, the KYC was completed, and the pending pension finally reached their account.

But there was more pain behind the anger.

Prajapati had been suffering from stomach ailments for years. His mother had eye problems, an internal head injury, and pain in her leg. After the video surfaced, the Collector intervened and ensured their treatment at Aurobindo Hospital. For two and a half hours, doctors attended to them, medicines were given, and wounds both visible and invisible were finally acknowledged.

"Now everything is fine," Prajapati said. "The Collector listened. Our work is done."