This experience happened about 20 years ago to a friend of mine. His name is Murugan. Now he is a professor in Annamalai University at Chidambaram. But, at that point of time, he was working as a Manager in Pondicherry Road Transport Corporation Ltd. His work involved travelling throughout Pondicherry and also parts of Tamilnadu. He used to combine his trips so that he could save his time on travel. On one occasion, I happened to be with him in Erode. He told me that he would be reaching Erode and staying in Hotel Sangam on the Monday. I told him that I would be reaching Erode on Tuesday morning and would be willing to stay with him for the rest of the day before we started for our individual journey. I went to meet him on Tuesday morning at around 6.15 a.m. And he was sleeping on a sofa just in front of the reception. I woke him up and asked him what happened.
He told me that he reached Erode around 12. 30 in the night and went to the lodge. Since he was regularly staying in the lodge, the person on duty told him that even though no double rooms were available, he would be willing to allow him to stay in a five-bedded room but would only charge for a double room since Murugan was to stay only until next evening. My friend was happy enough to agree to the proposal. He went to the room and he told me that he had a shower before he went to bed. But during the shower, he was hearing noise in the bedroom as if 3 or 4 persons were talking, discussing among themselves. He came out and saw twice before he got to continue his bathing. But, he told me that he had a nagging feeling that someone was watching him even during he was bathing. He came out and went to bed immediately. But, what followed was a nightmare.
He was in bed but could not get sleep. He was hearing voices as if some discussion was going on among 3-4 persons and it was like an argument. He also heard someone was crying. Somehow, he told me that he was getting some half sleep. Suddenly, he felt that someone was sitting over his chest, not allowing him to move. He was gasping for breath before he could shake the feeling. He came out and saw whether someone was there in the corridor. He could not see any person since it was well past midnight. Again, he went to bed. This time, he told me that the moment he fell on bed, it was as if some 2 persons were sitting over him and that made him feel somewhat shaky besides being not able to withstand the apparent weight. He started to yell but told me he could not get his voice and his voice was almost throttled. After much struggle, he was able to get out of bed and immediately came out of the room and went to the reception.
In the reception, the person, who allotted him room, was not available. But, the room boy was present. The room boy asked him what had happened and he narrated the whole story. The room boy asked him if he would be sleeping in the sofa opposite the reception for the night. Murugan readily agreed but asked him about the 5-bedded room. Then the room boy told that about 2-3 months ago, a family of 6 persons came and stayed there for night and consumed poison and the entire family committed suicide in that room. From that time on, the management was not allotting the room to anybody. But, since no rooms were vacant, the person in-charge happened to give the room to Murugan, perhaps because he did not visualise any problem. But it happened that Murugan experienced a nightmare of his life.
He was very shaken when I spoke to him in the morning and he did not dare enter the room again even after sunrise. The room boy, however, brought his luggage and we were given another room.
Years later, the hotel is still there. I heard that even now, they are not allotting this room to anybody. But, in the nights, they used to hear voices even from outside. The mystery continues.
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