Inspector Devaki - The Eve Teasers

Inspector Devaki entered the Police station and stopped dead, frowning. The cell where she had locked up those five eve teasers is empty. Slowly she walked to her seat and looked at Sub Inspector Lakshmi inquiringly. Lakshmi only returned her look but remained silent. 1

" Where are those scoundrels?" Devaki barked at Lakshmi2

" Oh them?" Lakshmi said, "why the S P came and told me to release them and so I did,"3

Devaki could sense the mocking tone in the Sub-Inspector's words but did not reply. She sat in her seat remembering that morning when she had arrested those five boys all of them college students and from the rich circle. She had been on her normal rounds in Gandhipuram area, Coimbatore and had seen those boys in the bus stop teasing the girls and acting smart. Even when she had stopped the Police Jeep right in front of the bus stop, they had ignored her and continued their teasing. 4

When she arrested them they had jeered " Sister, you don't know whom you are playing with". Ignoring their veiled threats she had them in the jeep and took them to the Station and had instructed the Sub- Inspector to book them on Eve teasing case.5

"What about the F I R, did not you book them?" Devaki snapped her question suddenly.6

Oh, the S P came before I could write it up," Lakshmi replied carelessly and then said " Look Devaki, they are from the influential society, why bring trouble on us?" 7

" We are the Police, Lakshmi, the public look at us for protection," Devaki said gravely and continued, " Aren't you concerned about these young girls who need our protection?" Devaki retorted.8

" Sure, I am concerned but not at the cost of our jobs," Lakshmi said smoothly, " They have the money and political influence, the first thing we know, we will be transferred to some small town far from here. Do you want that? Me, I don't,"  9

Devaki opened her mouth to respond but closed it disgusted with this selfish woman who called herself a policewoman.10

She lifted the telephone and called HQ and asked for S P Gunasekaran. "Not available," was the prompt reply. Devaki was thoughtful for a while and then putting on her cap, she left the station. She drove fast, anger simmering inside her and reached home. She ignored her housemaid who smiled at her and getting into her bedroom threw the cap and stick on the table, opened the buttons on her shirt and threw her on the bed. When the maid came after her, she simply said " Leave me alone, Radhi" and the girl sensing the bad mood left with out a word. 11

With her hands resting under her head Devaki lay there for a long time trying to forget the incident. But she could not. She thought of the young college girl who died because of Eve teasing in Madras and then there was that other girl in Nagercoil, she had committed suicide, when her mother was too afraid to report the teasing to the police.  What is the use of having such law and a woman Chief Minister if you can't even book a case for eve teasing without some higher officials interfering? She wondered. A small sound brought her out of her thoughts and she saw the scared face of Radhi near the door. Forcing a smile she told the girl to get the food ready and began to undress. 12

Getting under the shower in the bathroom she let the cold-water fall on her soft body and tried to relax. Deliberately she shut down her thoughts of the day and thought of herself. Her dreams, when she tried so hard to get this job, the hard studying and workouts she had done for this job, came to her mind. She thought of her father and mother who tried to discourage her giving her just these very reasons why she should not join the police force. 13

" You will never be able to work independently, Devi," Her father had explained, "Police job is for people who want to kill their conscience and just make money. This is not for honest people like us"  14

Devaki then had smiled " what about those men and women Daddy, Look at Thilagavathy I P S, Latika Saran, Karthikeyan, Devaram, I can name so many who were honest and did what they could, Why should not I try?" 15

"They are exceptional, Devi, not all can do it,"16

"I want to be exceptional too Daddy," Devaki had said. And it took many days and a lot of convincing arguments before she could even apply. When she was selected, no one in the family was happy. They all thought she was doing the wrong thing but played along simply because they did not want to hurt her and discourage her enthusiasm. The training period was easy for her since she already new Karate and had been exercising from her early teens. Even in the strategy course she was the shinning star and at the end of her training she was not at all surprised when she was chosen the best officer trainee. 17

All the senior officers had congratulated her warmly but her elation came when she met her idol Latika saran, the Lady super cop of India and received her personal praise. These accolades only added to her motivation and she promised herself she would be a great officer and a pride to the Police force. Once again Radhi had to tap the bathroom door to bring her to the present and she hastily dried herself and wearing a loose nighty came to the dining table. She ate quietly and went to bed as if in a trance. 18

She was still furious about those boys getting off so easily and she decided they would get their punishment by hook or crook. This decision brought a new line of thought and she was baffled as to how she could do it, without the police force on her side. The police will never lift their fingers against boys like this who come from rich, politically influential families. There was no Officer in the force she trusted enough to go to. 19

It was then that she thought of Sathya, the man whom she had helped clear his name in a murder case. It was during her first posting in Madurai and she was just an additional Inspector there learning her job first hand. Sathya was arrested in a murder case as a suspect and the police were using their dubious methods to get a confession out of him. When she saw him taking all the punishment silently and refusing to confess, she knew he must be innocent. Then she had stealthily made inquiries and using all her wits had brought the real culprit to book and saved him. But that is another story and you will read it later. The fact is he had been very rude to her from the beginning but had said he would help her if she should ever need it. And now she knew she needed him for this chore. He was strong and intelligent and could do this job, as she wanted. There was some thing about him that said he could be trusted. 20

That settled, she went to bed and slept peacefully. The next two weeks she was too busy collecting all kinds of information about those five boys, their addresses, the places where they usually hang out and the kind of things that interested them. Once she had all the information she needed, she took two days leave and went to Madurai. 21

She had Sathya's address and so did not have any trouble finding it. The area was a slum and the people looked at her and her car curiously. When she asked for his house, reluctantly, they showed her the house. The street was dirty and she had trouble navigating her car through the dirty kids who played on the narrow street. The street was dirty and smelled rotten. But the interior of his house was neat and clean. The woman who invited her in was also dressed neatly although the clothes were torn in places and stitched to hold. Devaki assumed correctly that this woman is his mother and she was disappointed when the woman told her he is not at home and she had no idea when he will return. 22

Devaki wanted to talk to Sathya and get away as soon as possible and his absence irritated her. She sat there impatiently unable to refuse the woman's hospitality and took the hot coffee she offered.  She took her time sipping the coffee and made casual conversation with the woman. But the woman was kind and talked to this rich looking beautiful girl all the time wondering about the nature of this visit. Devaki did not tell the woman her official identity, but only said she wanted to see him on an urgent matter. When at last she finished her coffee and he still did not turn up she gave her local phone number to the woman and requested her to tell Sathya to call her immediately on his return. Just as she headed towards the door, Sathya entered the house. 23

He stood at the door openly surprised at the girl. Devaki blushed, seeing him but composing herself told him she had come to talk to him. Without a word he ushered her to another room and closed the door and turned to look at this girl who took so much trouble to help him get out of that murder case. She was a tall girl for Indian standards and must be 5' 7'', he thought. She was slim but not skinny and had flesh at the right places and she had the figure of a real woman with a beautiful face. This girl is all woman and a beautiful one at that, he thought to himself but did not show any emotion on his face. He had seen her in Police uniform, but now seeing her in saree she looked so beautiful and alluring. Devaki was also looking at him. In his jeans and T Shirt He looked ruggedly handsome. He was almost 6' may be 5'11'' lean and supple with a strong expressionless face. With an effort she took her eyes off him and said, "can I sit down?” 24

"Sure," he said but there was no welcome in his face, He showed her to a chair and seating himself opposite asked, "What do you want?" he was curt and rude.   25

For a minute Devaki hesitated. Will this rude man help her? She wondered. He did not seem to be any friendly and except for the initial surprise on seeing her he was rough. But she had come all the way here to ask him for his help and she decided to try. 26

So patiently she told him about arresting those boys and how they got away Scot free without any punishment and how she wanted to punish them.27

"So you want them punished?" he asked when she finished, " But where do I come in," His voice was still rough and again she hesitated but went on. "I have a plan" she said slowly, "but I can't do it myself for obvious reasons, but you can do it".28

"How?" He asked laconically.29

She now explained her plan in detail and showed him all the information she had collected. He listened patiently and went through the information she had brought along. 30

He shrugged and asked "What if I am caught?" and continued, "this will amount to kidnapping and you know the law better than me".31

Devaki was loosing her patience and flared " Are you telling me you are scared?"32

"May be I am" He retorted, "What is there in this for me?" 33

"I thought you are a gentleman and had respect for women, Sathya," Devaki snapped, " You will be helping me for one thing and also get the satisfaction of punishing the deserved. Is not that enough?"34

"No, Not to me" 35

"Then what do you want?"36

" May be if I can screw you once," Sathya began, smiling for the first time. 37

Devaki was out of the chair in a flash and slapped his face hard and said,” You dirty bastard!"38

Holding back the tears that welled up she rushed to the door and quickly went out and getting into her car drove away ignoring the astonished woman in the house and the dirty kids who were playing on the streets. Disappointed and disgusted, she returned to Coimbatore on the same day and joined duty the next day canceling her leave.  39

"The bastard. How dare he?" the callousness of his words still sounded in her ears and she had trouble shutting it out. "Why did I go to him, why?" she asked herself again and again as she lay crying and sleepless on the next few nights. Sub Inspector Lakshmi and the housemaid Radhi both wondered at her temper but did not dare ask her for the reason. 40

It was three weeks later and on a fine early morning that she opened the local newspaper and the headlines starred at her. 41

"Eve Teasers Kidnapped and beaten up Mysteriously". 42

Hastily she went through the news. 43

"Five college boys were found beaten up and half naked tied to trees on the highway 50 miles from Coimbatore. The truck driver who found them untied them and took them to the nearest Police Station, where the boys said they were kidnapped by some masked men and were taken to some secret place, beaten up badly and were taken back to the place were they were found. The masked men had tied them to the trees and then had planted a placard on them which read " We got this for teasing girls" The police have filed a case and are investigating, the newspaper added".   44

"Good Lord!" Devaki exclaimed in surprise and pleasure, "So he has done it after all. The dirty bastard!" She was laughing and tears of happiness poured down her cheeks. Half an hour later when the telephone rang she lifted the receiver in a gleeful mood. 45

" Hi Lady Cop, saw the papers?" It was Sathya. 46

"You dirty bastard" was all she could say, but heard him laugh as he slammed the phone on her. 47

And folks, the saga of Inspector Devaki has just begun. Look out for more of her sagas in the near future.48