Elementary, eh?

CASES IN POINT

Case 1
Lavanya (name changed) was a well educated woman, whose charisma and compassion was known to be capable of engaging many a man. Having lived independently, far from parents and immediate relatives, in a metropolitan city, Lavanya had grown strong and smart enough to keep pace with the demands of the place and its people. Lavanya found love in a rich businessman and only son of his parents. Smitten by her charm, the guy was prepared to exchange vows after the first couple of meetings, but Lavanya apparently wanted to be sure of the relationship. It was after two years of courting that she finally consented to tie the knot. What had all the makings of a happily-ever-after, unfortunately, disintegrated a few months after the honeymoon. Six months into the marriage, Lavanya found herself in the court signing divorce papers.

Only a year later, there was Lavanya walking down the aisle, yet again, wearing a smile and the nuptial orange blossoms. And yet again, it was only a matter of two months before divorce did them apart.

Case 2
Akshay and Prachi (names changed) were stepping into their second year of marriage. Though it was an arranged marriage set-up, the couple had developed a camaraderie in a short span that was the envy of their other couple-friends. However, not too long thereafter, Akshay started to sense a vacuum that seemed to grow. The fire in their relationship was dying and despite his efforts to come up with surprises and sweet-nothings every other day, he could do little to salvage it. Was she involved with someone else, was the question he needed an answer to.

THE INVESTIGATION
What many thought to be Lavanya’s tough luck, turned out to be Lavanya’s toughened strategy. Her second husband decided to seek help of a private detective for a background check when Lavanya demanded an obnoxiously high amount for alimony. He approached National Detectives and Private Consultants, and founder Taralika Lahiri, upon investigating the case, discovered that Lavanya thrived on the money she received as alimony. “It was astonishing how this young girl conned rich boys into marrying her and then extracted money from them,” said Taralika. “She demanded 2.5 crores from the second guy on the argument that she does not work and thus needed survival amenities. And Lavanya had already fleeced a hefty sum, maritally and legally, from her first husband. And all this was done very smartly and smoothly!”

In case 2, Akshay’s fears of his wife’s extramarital affair were sadly confirmed; only, it turned out that Prachi was having an affair with a woman! Baldev Kr Puri, Founder and Director of AMX Detectives shared, “We found that Prachi was a lesbian and perhaps married in order to maintain a so-called social status.”

A DETECTIVE’S DIARY
‘I am a detective’ sure sounds quite cool a profession, but what lies behind this racy job is tremendous amount of hard work and risks, since there’s a lot at stake. Taralika Lahiri chose this profession at a time when all that our education system was churning out were doctors and engineers and women were content with household chores. Even today, she is one of the few working as a private detective. “I was a law student and after my graduation I joined Globe Detective Agency where investigations of a lot of cases exposed me to the job of a detective. After I felt that I had confidence and expertise to take up cases by myself, I set up National Detectives and Private Consultants.  Bespectacled, in short hair and fitted trousers and shirt, Taralika does not miss calls, even during our conversation. “My phone calls out to me very often”, she smiled and said. “I have to be available for my clients and my other investigators all the time.” Although matrimony investigation requests and lately, cases of parents looking to spy over their children’s lives and whereabouts pour in aplenty, those are not the ones that excite this detective. What excites Taralika are matters of corporate frauds, pre-employment investigations, cases of child abuse, child trafficking, kidnappings, thefts, cases of missing persons and murders.

Detectives are often thrown into perilous situations; aren’t there times when gender could be a hurdle, I wondered aloud. Taralika agreed and also revealed that gender biases had pushed her out of her previous organisation. In her tenure of 28 years as a detective, Taralika has had to travel to dusty and dingy corners of the country, sport disguised identities at times, and face death squarely in the eye. However, she admits that in some circumstances she couldn’t be thankful enough for being a woman!

For detective Baldev Kr Puri, it was a matter of taking charge of familial profession. “My father was in the same profession, but it was a tough choice; 25 years ago, detective agencies were unheard of. I started off as a corporate detective and then slowly moved into investigations of other crimes as well.” Today, with detective agencies springing up in every nook and corner of the country, doesn’t competition hurt, I asked. “I’m glad detective agencies are coming up. At least now, more youngsters are becoming aware of this profession. We get calls from people for jobs as detectives." said Baldev. He was unperturbed about the increasing number of agencies. "Although being a detective is a high paying job, not everyone has the talent to become one,” he said.

Case details are stingily shared and investigation methods are now far more complex than what the carrot-chomping Karamchand was used to. “We don’t let a single clue go unnoticed, no matter how insignificant it might be. There is always some information hidden in the tiniest of clues. We have to be extremely thorough with our research and always be ready to be on the go,” was all I could extract from Taralika upon asking her about the child trafficking case she had mentioned.

The role of private detectives is separate from that of the police. They are not involved in the legal procedures. For instance, in a murder case, due to lack of manpower or resources, the police may choose to involve a private detective whose job is only to investigate and collect as much information as possible. Vikas Mattoo, a criminal lawyer said, “There are many times when lawyers go to private investigators for their help. It’s not possible for us to be present in more than a couple of places to get information and so we appoint detectives. All they do is hand over all the investigation reports to us and we carry on the legal proceedings.”

THE ETHICAL CODE
Ethics are a grey area. Investigation often entails intrusion on private spaces of people or places, and yet they maintain that invading the privacy of people goes against their code of ethics. Good detectives follow a very strong ethical code of conduct. “We definitely have to adhere to legalities, which is why it is very important for a detective to know the law”, enjoins  Taralika. Baldev added, “Practices like hacking personal computer systems, tapping phones etc are deemed as intrusion of privacy and are absolutely unethical. Moreover, many agencies prolong cases to make more money. Good and experienced detectives will give a particular timeline and will resolve the case within that time frame.” Suffice to say, beware of unscrupulous investigators.

HOW TO BECOME ONE?
Many detective agencies receive calls from college graduates scouting for jobs as a private detective. There is no institute in India that imparts formal training to become one. “It’s a complete hands-on experience”, said Taralika. In fact, Baldev’s plea to the education ministry is to start up courses in universities. “There are courses on forensic sciences, then why not on private investigation?” has been his question for the past several years. But for now, if you are one of those who’d like to become a Sherlock Holmes or a Watson, here are essential traits to look out for:
-A go-getter attitude: Are you always up for getting your hands dirty to seek information?
-Excellent communication skills: Are you a good listener and are able to interpret observation and information which others may not?
-Excellent analytical abilities: Are you good at reading between the lines? Able to make logical inferences from available information?