Another cop whips out pen to break free!

WHEN AKHILESH Nigam ‘Akhil’, a deputy superintendent of police, (Dy SP) writes “behra qanoon sunta kahan nirdoshon ki cheekh, … insaaf ke beech chalta hai dhanda,” hardly does he realise that he has joined the unique reforms brigade, who can’t fight the system and so have chosen to express as writers!

It was significant that at the release function of Nigam’s books Uttar Dega Kaun and Abhilasha” at the Gandhi Bhawan auditorium there was a senior IAS officer, a retired PCS officer, a retired DGP and a serving Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) who too had taken to poetry to say what they otherwise couldn’t.

For Akhilesh, in his role as a cop, is witness to how cops water down cases, dilute charges, take sides either at the behest of powers that be or for their own pecuniary gains and thus justice keeps on getting delayed for the common man. Akhilesh, the cop of course, is helpless, bound as he is by the system. The poet is not.

For Akhilesh’s poems present whatever he witnesses firsthand as a cop. “I know people generally do not associate a cop with poetry. But, I feel that a cop can be a better poet simply because so many varied emotions unfold before his eyes daily. All that one has to do is to present them poetically.”

Sample this. “Chehre par masoomiyat ka bhaav, mauqa pate hi laga dete daanv…bacho inse yeh bade khunkhar, bahut paine hai inke hathiyar”. It’s clear that the verses are an outburst of a poet at the crumbling values both within the police set up and outside. Again in another poem, he compares man to dog and says, “shwaan toh namak ka haq hai karta ada, par insaan jiska khata namak, karta usi-sey daga” and then goes on to comment on the sycophants.

When he writes, “Aaj in chaplooson ki hi machi hai dhoom, pair chaat-te chaa-te mukh lete hain choom, sahyog, sahbhagita ki jagah, virodh ke jhande, apne hi samaj ko torhne ko, nit nav nav hathkande,”  it doesn’t require much effort to realise that the poetic barb could as well be directed at his colleagues and superiors in the department.

And that’s not all. For in an obvious reference to the politicians, he comments, “chunavi bayar chal rahi utapt, dekhta hoon, kuchh rakt pipasu lakadbaghe, bhed ki khaal orhe huey, dawa karte hain, janmanas ke masiha hone ka…” But poetry has its limitations. It was a classic coincidence that from the same stage where his collection of poems was released on Sunday, came an announcement about his promotion from Dy SP to Additional SP.

Those responsible for deteriorating standards are the destiny makers of an average cop.

To release the frustration, poetry comes in handy. It was not just a coincidence that senior IAS officer, JS Mishra, former DGP MC Dewedy, DIG DC Pande, retired PCS officer, Vinod Chandra Pandey, who were present at the function, who have seen the system from up-close at various levels, are poets too. For service rules read: Serve-(us)-if-u-want-to-rule!