Birbal and the Case of the Stolen Watermelon

One day, a distressed farmer arrived at Emperor Akbar’s court, complaining that his prized watermelon had been stolen. Akbar, determined to solve the mystery, called for Birbal’s help.

Birbal thought for a moment and came up with a clever plan. He gathered all the villagers and handed each of them a stick of the same length. Then, he made a surprising announcement: “By tomorrow morning, the thief’s stick will magically grow longer.”

The next day, Birbal inspected the sticks carefully. Among them, one was slightly shorter than the rest. Pointing to the man holding it, Birbal declared, “Here is our thief!”

Terrified, the man confessed. He had cut his stick shorter, fearing it would grow overnight and reveal his crime. Birbal’s sharp thinking once again proved that guilt often betrays the wrongdoer.

Moral: Guilt always reveals itself, no matter how hard one tries to hide it.

Summary: To find the thief who stole a watermelon, Birbal asked villagers to bring sticks, claiming the thief’s would grow. The guilty man shortened his stick in fear, exposing himself and proving Birbal’s clever plan.