Criminals in Uniform : A Hindi Thriller | Book Review

Truth is stranger than the fiction.

We all have heard/read this phrase many a times and most of us believe in the same as well, right?

Sometimes the creative people come up with an idea of writing a riveting thriller based on some real incidents – the incidents that could have caught many eyes and became talk of the town, or even a country.

Reporters duo Sanjay Singh and Rakesh Trivedi are teamed up for their latest Hindi Thriller क्रिमिनल्स इन यूनिफॉर्म (CRIMINALS IN UNIFORM). While inspired by many real incidents the book comes up with a legal disclaimer. Of course, it would be a mix-up of both. But, the research work (they have experience of around two decades in the field) of the investigative journalists is evident in the book. When the readers themselves start making links between the incidents mentioned in the book and some real incidents and/or people and/or places, it is the success of the storyteller for sure.

Book Cover:

Being a gateway to the virtual world explored within, the cover page plays a vital role in inspiring a casual browser to give it a second look and go through its blurb. Eventually, the browser may be converted to a reader. The role of a well designed cover page in book selling is really remarkable.

As you can see the cover page of the book is designed with the shades of blood red. It suits perfectly to the book content and genre. The illustration of a multi-story building (Kuberia) gives you enough hint about the story. Two figures looking in different direction have contrast colors reflecting the title quite well. It raises a question “are the people in uniform pure white or they have their own shades of grey (or even black”).

Overall, a well thought cover page that remains true to the book content, and is attractive too.

Let us take a look at the bird’s bye view of the book plot.

The Plot:

In Mumbai, the economic capital of India (that is Bharat), the largest democracy in the world, lives many billionaires along with the common men. One of those notable wealthy business tycoons, is Mr. Kuber who lives with his socialite wife and only son, Dhruv Kuber. Being the wealthiest man of the country Kuber is not only one of the prominent figures, but the most prominent figure. He is given lot of special treatments along with the security cover.

His home(! if we can call it so), Kuberia, is one of the most famous residents in the world. Along with state and center provided security teams, Kuber’s own security team takes care of the security of “Kuberia”. Aman Chaudhari heads this security arrangements.

During one of his routine combing of the streets around Kuberia he found a Scorpio having a number plate of one of the private cars belong to Kuberia! He found it suspicious and initiated search! Not only the police team(s), but also news channel vans came rushing. The police has found a jersey belong to the PCL (Premier Cricket League – प्रीमियर क्रिकेट लीग) team owned by Kuber, a bunch of Gelatin sticks and a letter from this abandoned vehicle.

The ammunition was sufficient to blast Kuberia, but was not linked with a trigger anyway. The letter however conveyed message in clear words:

डियर कुबेर भैया-भाभी, ये तो सिर्फ एक ट्रेलर है| हमने पूरे परिवार के लिए इंतज़ाम कर रखा है| संभलकर रहिये| गुड नाईट|

So, the case is clear, someone took a step to threaten one of the most secure and politically connected person of the country!

Many agencies like RAW, IB, NIA and various departments of state police like ATS, local police station and others wanted to lead this investigation. But, upon insistence and lobbying of Mahavir Tomar, the commissioner of Mumbai Police, the case is given to CIU (Crime Investigation Unit – क्राइम इन्वेस्टीगेशन यूनिट) lead by Yateen Sathe. Yateen is a mere API but his connections with commissioner and thus to the government made him the de-facto boss of CIU.

So, will CIU be able to solve this case? And why it is reffered as (Criminals In Uniform)? Well you can get the answers by reading this thriller. During this course, you will meet with कुबेर, कुबेरिया, ध्रुव कुबेर, अमन चौधरी, होम मिनिस्टर सुनील सरदेशपांड़े, एटीएस चीफ विश्वजीत, मुंबई पुलिस कमिश्नर महावीर तोमर, एपीआई यतीन साठे, एटीएस डीआईजी मनदीप पलांडे, नित्या शेट्टी, सब इंस्पेक्टर फखरुद्दीन हाजी, राजेश दुल्लत उर्फ़ डेरिंग दुल्लत, नरेन आर्य, मारियो फर्नांडिस, हसमुख जैन, जीतेन्द्र नागपुरे, संचिनी, नीना डायस, गजानन झेंडे, दमानिया फॅमिली, मंत्री प्रनिल सानप, and others. One of the most interesting character is reporter Sanjay Trivedi (I like the way the author duo – लेखकद्वय – has named it संजय-त्रिवेदी). And yes, mention of legendary Indian Cricketer – Sachin Tendulkar at various places will put a smile on any cricket loving reader.

Views and Reviews:

Of course, I will try to avoid as many spoilers as possible, but please read with a consent that some of them are inevitable and may be found mentioned.

I like the way the authors have plotted the entire thriller. The story starts with one of the most recognizable incidents (as mentioned earlier) and any little-aware reader will be hooked with the story from the beginning. Even the mention of a body builder cop, or an encounter-expert will be able to link these fictional characters to their inspiration!

The author makes their intention clear in the foreword section itself:

अगर पत्रकारिता को ‘जल्दबाज़ी में लिखा गया इतिहास’ कहा जाता है तो फिर उस पत्रकार की लिखी किताब को ‘फुर्सत में लिखे गए इतिहास का फर्स्ट ड्राफ्ट’ माना जा सकता है|

They elaborate:

कई बार बड़ी घटनाओं के सभी रोचक पहलुओं, परदे के पीछे की कहानियों को चाँद मिनटों में पिरोना अक्सर मुश्किल काम होता है| समाज में अपने आस-पास घटनेवाली ऐसी कई कहानियों और उनके किरदार को निष्पक्ष दृष्टिकोण से जनता तक पहुँचाना एक पत्रकार की बड़ी जिम्मेदारी होती है, जिसे वो एक लेखक के रूप में बेहतर निभा सकता है|

In addition to the contemporariness, the well-built characters is also one of the strong points of the book. Be it Sathe or Verma or Tomar, you will find the layers of their characters unfolding at periodic intervals. In fact, after around half of the book is completed, you will come to know about Sathe’s love for cricket.

अब तक क्रिकेट ही उसका जीवन था| यतीन को लग रहा था की उस जीवन को गुडबाय कहने का वक्त आ गया है|

And, when Sathe argues for himself in the court, you will know that he is not the head of CIU for nothing.

योर ऑनर, बेल इस अ रूल, जेल इझ एन एक्सेप्शन… ज़मानत देना एक नियम है और जेल एक अपवाद, सुप्रीम कोर्ट के 1977 के स्टेट ऑफ़ राजस्थान वर्सेज़ बालचंद वाले केस में अपने ऐतिहासिक फैसले में ये क़ानूनी सिद्धांत स्थापित किया था, जो मौलिक अधिकारों पर आधारित था और जिसकी गेरंटी भारत के संविधान में निहित है| ….

The book also talks about various investigation agencies around the country and their work areas. Especially, their use of personal benefit and or vendetta by various governments. The following lines are an example:

सीबीआई जाँच हो नहीं सकती थी क्योंकि देश के कई अन्य राज्यों की तरह महाराष्ट्र ने सीबीआई (सेन्ट्रल ब्यूरो ऑफ़ इन्वेस्टीगेशन) को दिया “जनरल कंसेंट” वापस ले लिया था!… सीबीआई को मना करने का ऑप्शन तो राज्य के पास था मगर एनआईए (नेशनल इन्वेस्टीगेशन एजेंसी) को मना करने का ऑप्शन नहीं|…
— — — — — — — —
… जहाँ पर भी एक्सप्लोसिव एक्ट का जिक्र आता है वहां एनआईए को बिना किसी की अनुमति के सीधे जाँच करने का अधिकार होता है|

The way the rich and connected are getting the special treatment is also mentioned in the book, at various places.

लोकल पुलिस स्टेशन ने मीडिया के लिए कुछ दूरी पर बैरिकेड लगा दिए और मीडिया को दूर से ही रिपोर्टिंग करनी पद रही थी| पुलिसवाले भी ज्यादा से ज्यादा मुस्तैदी दिखा रहे थे| साठे जानता था की यह मुस्तैदी असल में मीडिया से ज्यादा कुबेर को इम्प्रेस करने की कोशिश थी|
— — — — — — — —
उन्हें पहले आने के बावज़ूद इंतज़ार करना पड़ा था क्योंकि प्रायरिटी पर कुबेर के हेलीकॉप्टर को पास दिया गया था| उनके और कुबेर हेलीकॉप्टर में उतना ही फर्क था जितना किसी ज़माने में राजा भोज और गंगू तेली में था|

The authors also mention importance of some technical details (like calling via Internet, use of VPN etc) during investigation. For example:

मोबाईल चेसिस नंबर हर गाड़ी का एक अपना यूनिक नंबर होता है| जिसके ज़रिये गाड़ी के मालिक के बारे में पता लगाया जा सकता है| गाड़ी का नंबर प्लेट बदलकर अक्सर क्राइम होते है मगर बाद में गाडी के अंदर छानबीन के ज़रिये अंकित चेसिस नंबर का पता लग जाता है|…

The authors’ exploration of geographical details about various important offices in Mumbai will be found interesting by various readers. In addition, the way various chase happens, and tricks played will be appreciated as well. Sometimes, they also refers to the significance of specific location like:

यूँ तो मुंबई में 90 से ज्यादा पुलिस स्टेशन है मगर यलो गेट सब से अलग है| समझ लीजिये की अरब सागर या भारत के पश्चिमी इलाके के समंदर में कोई भी अपराध होता है तो वह यहाँ दर्ज़ होता है|

Also, the attributes of police department and how superiors are treated as, is mentioned via an interesting wordplay.

अनुशासन और ओहदा पुलिस फ़ोर्स का अभिन्न अंग होता है|

खासकर बिहार जहाँ के केडर से पलांडे आया था, वहां तो सीनियर की ऐसी खातिर होती थी जैसी दामाद की भी नहीं होती|

The book explore the way political parties and politicians are using this incident to take its advantage for their own personal interest and political mileage in realistic ways.

The book says:

“यहाँ असली बॉस है ऑपर्चुनिटी और टाइमिंग, जो जिस वक्त उसका सही इस्तेमाल कर ले रहा है वही उस वक्त में बॉस है| मैं मुंबई क्राइम ब्रांच का जॉइंट कमिश्नर रह चूका हूँ इनके खेल को अच्छी तरह से समझता हूँ|”

“हम फिर क्या करे, सर|”

करना क्या है, हम नेशनल इन्वेस्टीगेशन एजेंसी है| स्टेट गवर्नमेंट हमारी पोलिटिकल बॉस नहीं है| इनको एक दूसरे के साथ भिड़े रहने देते हैं| उसी में ये बिज़ी रहेंगे| हमारी तरफ ध्यान नहीं जायेगा| हम चुपचाप अपना काम करते है| जब वक्त आएगा तब हम भी बताएंगे की एनआईए क्या चीज है|

And summarizes it as:

राजनीती में कुछ भी फ्री या परोपकार में नहीं होता|

Also, the scene where Sathe is driving his vehicle and various teams of investigation agencies following him, politicians watching him and news-channels speculating his possible next destination is interesting.

The book has some printing/proof-reading errors which could have been avoided.

14 साल की उम्र के लिए क्रिकेट किट कावो बैग जरूरत से ज्यादा भारी था|

…बल तैनात किया हुआ था|यह सब इसलिए भी की …

The mention of adulteries and use of cuss-words making it a read for mature readers only.

If want me to quote only one segment from the book, I will probably go with the following:

…अरबपति बिज़नेसमैन और सफल पॉलिटिशियन को गलत मानने की लोगो की टेन्डेन्सी है| जबकि सेना वालों, एनकाउंटर स्पेसियलिस्टो, ज्यूडिसियल सिस्टम को उतनी ही तमाम बुराइओं के बावज़ूद पवित्र माना जाता है| …

And yes, you will love the chapter titles too.

The book doesn’t take anyone’s side, nor it tries to glorify anyone. It remains neutral and tries to share a third-person’s perspective for all the incidents that happens around us. The onlookers may see just the end picture and some biased narratives (from all the sides), but the original truth may remain always hidden. To me, this perspective is the USP of this fictional thriller.

The idea behind the quotes was without revealing the plot much, present various aspects of the book. So, you yourself can decide whether it is the kind of writing you would love to go for.

Sumamry:

I found the book quite an interesting thriller having its share of contemporariness. A perfect choice for mature readers.

ThinkerViews Rating:

Around 7.5 to 8 stars out of 10.

Quick Purchase Links:

• Buy - क्रिमिनल्स इन यूनिफॉर्म / Criminals In Uniform by Sanjay singh, Rakesh Trivedi - Paperback - Amazon IN

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