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To win a woman's heart...

This is a love story. Of a badly-smitten Calcutta youth, Sujit Das, and his, well, brave efforts to win a lady's heart.

Unfortunately for him, there is no happy ending, no wedding bells, no happily-ever-after. Instead, he has ended up on the cold floor of a police lockup, to be tried under Section 365 of the Indian Penal Code.

It all began when 26-year-old Das alias Manik, of Bakhtiar Shah road in south Calcutta, lost his heart irretrievably to a law student. Being a fish-seller by trade, it wasn't easy for him to confess his love -- but he did it bravely.

Only to rebuffed.

The girl, moreover, was already in love with co-collegiate Shamba Mitra, the son of a retired high court judge. That complicated matters further, and planted the seed of a foolish plan in Manik's frenzied brain.

He decided to kidnap Shamba. And then, 'rescue' him, after which, he was sure, the grateful girl would fall for him!

The plan worked fine. One morning, the four 'kidnappers' whom Manik had arranged for, whisked Shamba away in a car and brought him to a house in Garia where he was waiting. The smitten youth reassured Shamba he had nothing to fear, laid out a sumptous meal before him and let him telephone home to say he was okay.

The next morning, the rescuer and the rescued returned home. But Manik's plan had somehow come unstuck; the police had caught on to the game. Thus, while Shamba found himself locked in a tearful reunion with his parents, the other found himself being roughly seized and driven away to the police station.

The police are now going ahead with criminal action against the youth, whatever his motives. The law, they say strictly, will take its course.