[digital drifter]

While studying in college, the custom is to rag(haze) the first year students for the first couple of weeks.  It is officially banned and is now a criminal offense in India as it has resulted in kids committing suicide and causing of physical injury.

Well, it was the new college year and the admissions were in full swing.  And ragging too was in full swing with the seniors trickling in from their holidays.  Now, my friend Saravanan had not come yet and his batchmates hatched a neat plot(based on an event one of them heard).

Grab a few freshers and make their life miserable.  At the end of the ragging session for that day, they'd warn the freshers "this is nothing compared to what Saravanan will do to you once he's in. Be careful"

And  so it goes for 3 days.  At the end of it, the entire first year of college students have burnt in their brains "saravanan....psycho...torture"

By this time, ragging is in full swing and a Head of Dept, who is generally the hostel warden is there every evening near the hostel mess, to prevent freshers from being waylaid and ragged.

Cue, Saravanan who has no idea that this happened turning up around dinner time carrying his travel bag.  He's just come in and headed for the hostel mess for food.

Sees his Professor there and chats with him.

"Saravanan...", the professor goes, the fresher passing nearby freezes and then quickly snaps a salute (one of things that they force freshers to do is an army salute all the seniors for no apparent reason)

The Professor stops, looks at the fresher and then look Saravanan;  face goes a bit stern.

"Saravanan, what's going on?"

Another fresher passing by, freezes, snaps a salute and goes into the mess hall.

"Dammit, Saravanan, I'm a HOD(Head of Dept) and I've been standing here like a rock for the last one hour, why is everyone saluting
YOU?"

"Sir, no idea, sir.  I just came into college 5 minutes ago; look, here's my travel bag"

"You've been ragging them haven't you?"

Saravanan protested again to his innocence.

"We need to talk.  Go in and have dinner, lets talk"

And they both step inside the mess hall.

From the far end, one of the blokes  yells "SARAVANA, you're baaaaaaaaaaaaccccccck"

The din and clatter slowly dies down and a hushed silence falls.  
.
.
.
.
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Slowly, a chair scrapes back,a fresher hesitantly gets up and salutes him.  Then the next chair and then the next chair.

200 kids stand up and throw a ragged salute at Saravanan and an incredulous looking professor.

At the far end, his batchmates are falling over themselves with laughter and whooping.

YOU'RE SUSPENDED!

2 college inquiries later, Saravanan is so wound up, freshers get beaten for just looking at him.