Khekpa or is it head hunter?

From my early childhood days itself, I use to hear people scaring their little ones by saying about khekpa.  How they kidnap you and then feed you good food and then put you in between walls to die. I don’t know how far it is true but to make it more realistic elders use to narrate stories about them. Well now when parents are narrating story as their supporting document how can we deny about it. So I always had that fear at the back of my mind and even now when I am adult I still get frightened when I hear about it.

 In the recent times there were rumours about khekpa in Nganglam.  I don’t know why but whenever there is some problem in some place I somehow reach that place.  It so happened that I actually chose to go to Nganglam for PHCB. Despite of piles of work in the office, I thought why not roam in Nganglam for few days. Of course more than roaming it was tiring like hell. During that time there were  rumors’ of khekpa. It  didn’t scare me while I was in Pema Gatshel. But there was air of fear among the people living in Nganglam. All of them were scared of Khekpa and were also narrating few incidents. I don’t know how far it was true but it was successful in making me scared.

  In Nganglam I stayed at my friend’s sister’s place. Everyone was sound asleep when I heard some whispers followed by flickering light from outside. When I checked my cell phone it was one something am.  My heart was beating so fast and I thought that’s the end. That’s how we die.  I slowly woke up my friends who was sleeping next to me and told her that there were khekpa around. I imagined how one of them will climb the house and the rest will surround it .Then the one who climbs will open the door and then will kidnap.  This was how people there narrated to us. And I felt as if someone had climbed. I actually forgot at that moment that there were actually six people at home not alone as in the story narrated. My friend was also scared and called her brother in law. In the mean time I called my two other friends sleeping in other room. But they didn’t pick up. When brother in law went to check I woke up and tried to put on the light. But my friend forbade me saying khekpa will see us. I tried to follow her brother in law but my friend was scared to death that she didn’t even let me. There was complete silent for what seemed like forever. I imagined how kidnapper has kidnapped her brother in law and oh god… that was scary. After sometime her brother in law said that they weren’t khekpa but people who were doing patrolling at night since the rumors’ of khekpa. Both of them slept but can’t say whether peacefully or not but I stayed awake for a long time. Even a tinge of noise would wake me up and to these days still if I am alone. The scary night did make us laugh a lot next day.