SONGS OF AN UNCAGED PARROT

It is rather ludicrous to imagine the visage of Rajendra Shekhar IPS (RETD), Director CBI and Director General Rajasthan to be a caged parrot for his acumen as an upright police officer remains a celebrated fact in the annals of police history.

Non the less the poetic title of the book by him could be a tongue in cheek ironic comment on the reality a senior police officer is privy to and the fact that he is supposed to keep the truth under wraps. With the onus of secrecy, Rajendra Shekhar remained honest to the core in being truthful and uncompromised. Living in high proximity to high political and bureaucratic powers he remained the chosen officer to solve difficult, sensitive and high voltage cases in the country. His education at Mayo College and St. Stephens and his avid reading habit honed his natural flair for writing.

Before the current book, he had penned down three books – two in English and one in Hindi. As the blurb on the back cover of ‘Songs of an Uncaged Parrot’ from Konark Publication says ‘ the compilation of real cases will surprise, delight and enthral’ the reader, ‘each one is as riveting as any top class crime mystery and yet replete with humour’ albeit on the drier side.

His narrative takes the reader away from conjectural journalism to the murky reality of local, national and international crimes times with highly political overtones that at times seemed to be jeopardizing the very seat of the ruling governments. With no shackles of job secrecy, Shekhar the reticent and duty-bound officer with a warm human heart can talk now. It is amazing though how he balances truth with popular perceptions, honesty with temerity, bravery with analysis and excellent teamwork. In dealing with cases like Bofors, Nirankari Baba Murder case, General Vaidya murder case, and the antedated L. N. Mishra Bomb Blast case any which way his factual narrative goes, he never stops being honest to his conscience and duty.

His perceptions and dealings with people remain very sensitive. The writer has a journalistic and factual narrative style in writing which is punctuated with his side observations about situations, his colleagues, senior and junior officers and public figures. These observations give a savoury warmth to the book. The personal anecdotes give the reader a peek and a perspective into the human side of the rather glorified, power tinged and at times heartless image perceptions about police officers. To this day the Bofors case remains a mystery. While reading the case titled ‘Grey Area: The Bofors Case’ the reader is introduced to the high political drama that was being played behind the scene.

The purchase of high-quality artillery guns from Sweden had deliberately been soft-pedalled by the congress government, the writer tells us. The case was ordered to be treated as a Foreign Exchange Regulation infringement case. A deeper probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation was shot down by Sweden, obviously to the relief of the congress government. The most meticulously candid investigation by Chitra Subramaniyam from The Hindu shook the very ground from under the feet of political powers. Yet history tells us there are no permanent enemies and allies in politics. After Rajeev Gandhi, V. P. Singh’s ouster followed by Chandra Shekhar becoming the Prime Minister had an internal, subversive pact of supporting congress and slowing down of Bofors investigation.

The conscientious resolution of a Police Officer clashing with high-end politics with international ulterior motives in play does not bring positive results. The seemingly simple procedure of transfer and convenient incumbent postings followed such instances. The caged parrot as a writer is free to analyze and write now what he knew so well then. The truth coming from the most direct and authentic source of CBI Chief Rajendra Shekhar, the erstwhile Director General of Police of Rajasthan is satisfying for the reader but were sad for the short shrift officer. As the writer tells us, ‘it does not pay to be upright and professional in a system dominated by sycophants and time servers.’

The book narrates General Arun Kumar Vaidya’s case showing how precarious the line of duty could be for an officer caught in the vicious web of duty and retribution. As Chief of Army Staff, General Vaidya carried out Operation Blue Star. After the operation, he retired and decided to live in his home town Pune peacefully with his wife. It is difficult to decide if he could have survived the attempt on his life if his security had not been scaled down by the government. We all know how the General was shot down by terrorists.

Wars are not the only ground where soldiers die! Regretfully, one cannot trace the vivid outlines of all the blazing cases handled by the writer in the limited space of a column. In the middle of the ruthless developments of local, national and international crimes, one cannot forget the home where the writer’s wife Shiela with three children, Sanjeev, Bharat and Arjun lived at times scooped up in the basement in the border town of Barmer. As I know the couple, one can see the easy comfort and snuggled bonhomie the couple shares to this day.

Not all Miranda college products and Mayo and St. Stephenites live in cities of their choice with sprawled lawns and cool comforts. It is heartwarming to mention the fun-filled case of young Arjun who was with his parents in Ganga Nagar, a border town of Rajasthan. The child along with his grandmother loved to watch the change of guard ceremony with ‘Salaami Shashtra’, the stiffened salute and the impeccably uniformed guards.

His ‘Bombita’ days when he used to eat the delicious though heavily spiced food of the revered guards, denying to eat home food and soon enough falling ill due to stomach ailment, are recorded in a fun-filled narrative. The book spans its real-life stories to include most simple characters like sepoys, civilians, youth icons of the writer’s college days, his casual mention of his love for his college mate Shiela, the happy LIC agent, college time friends and of course the most close-knit family members.

These episodes show the loving and humane side of the writer officer Rajendra Shekhar while providing regular comic relief in the middle of tense criminal episodes. The hundred eighty-page books by Konark Publications are priced at rupees 297 and make interesting reading as it gives the reader a rare peek into the hidden workings of the system, politics and human nature.