There was a time when a monkey god burnt down an entire city. Nothing was left except a heap of ashes. Thus says the Ramayan. But the modern day epic being written in the streets of Delhi has all the makings of a tragicomedy. The authorities have learnt a thing or two from mythology. Armies can be formed with the help of our primate cousins. Thus they have recruited a langur to rid the secretariat of monkeys. But what if langur s take over government offices and replace all the monkeys? Nothing much. Some feel no file will move for sure, but then what's new.

How did the monkeys come to haunt the corridors of power to begin with? Obviously, none of them sat for the civil services exam. They made it through the back door. Nepotism, indolence and corruption played their role. They were relocated when their homes were taken up in the name of development. So seeking compensation, they came to the centre of power seeking help from those who could give them space.

There is something wrong in the government's monkey policy, if it has a policy to monkey around with, that is. Monkeys, like humans, have to be rehabilitated and not just relocated. Leading primatologists who were consulted and asked for action plans, which they duly submitted, are angry as these plans were never implemented. Now they have decided to swing clear of government's corridors