 "Dial 100: Tough Cases, Tougher Policemen")
Dial 100: Tough Cases, Tougher Policemen
by Kulpreet Yadav
Published by HarperCollins
209 pages
₹299
This gripping true crime book is testimony to the old saying that truth is often stranger than fiction. The seven high-stakes cases in the book, all of which have made headlines in recent times, read like thrillers or movie scripts.
The author of Dial 100 is actor and filmmaker Kulpreet Yadav, a product of the Naval Officers’ Academy who spent two decades as an officer in uniform and commanded three ships in his career. After he retired, he became a prolific writer, authoring 16 books across diverse genres, including espionage, war history and romance. Following the success of Queens of Crime (2019), co-authored with actor Sushant Singh, Dial 100 is Mr Yadav’s second foray into the true-crime genre.Rooted in real investigations across the length and breadth of India, the book provides a rare, behind-the-scenes look into how the country’s toughest crimes are cracked. With the pace of an OTT thriller, each chapter of the book reads like a case file — layered, tense and filled with sharp twists.
Many of the cases in the book sound familiar, and we habitually come across them in the papers: A wife conspiring with her ex-lover to murder her husband; an inter-state gang looting a moving train; a serial killer leaving a bloody trail across states; and a cyber conman evading capture. Multiple identities, abductions, train robberies, rapes, murders, serial killings, cybercrime, job scammers and fraudsters — all this and more find place in this book. Mr Yadav describes the cases in vivid detail, often portraying the criminals’ meticulous planning and execution.
Fiction often influences reality too, and so not surprisingly, several criminals learn a lot by just watching B-grade films, particularly those that showcase outlandish and imaginative methods of committing crimes. Through the complex cases, Mr Yadav also shows the inner workings of the police, and how they use their instincts to decipher the minds of criminals. A police inspector in charge of one of the cases rightly points out that there is no such thing as a less or more hardcore criminal. “A criminal is a criminal. Period,” he asserts.
Each of the cases prove how the use of technology, in various forms, such as mobile tower coverage, CCTV footage, narco-analysis tests, DNA analysis, polygraph tests, IMEI tracking and “gait analysis” (the study of how someone walks) lead the police to nab the cleverest of criminals.
In the book’s preface, Mr Yadav points out that the Indian police force is often stereotyped as sloppy or inefficient — a perception that, while popular, is far from the truth. He adds that with a staggeringly low police-to-population ratio of just 150 officers per 100,000 citizens, India falls significantly short of the 200 mark stipulated by the United Nations. “This inadequate staffing, compounded by low pay, gruelling work hours and limited opportunities for continuous training in an era of rapidly evolving technology, paints a picture of an overburdened and under-resourced force,” elaborates Mr Yadav.
Crime is never pleasant to read about or watch, least of all experience. But the real-life stories in the book remind readers how to keep themselves safe and watch for dangerous warning signals. The fact that Mr Yadav has also been a screenwriter in the past possibly explains why the language in the book is straightforward and free of complicated jargon. He presents the cases in a relatable manner — recreating dialogues and scenes in a way that an engaging film or web series would.
Mr Yadav dedicates the book to police officers — unsung heroes — who relentlessly pursue justice, often going above and beyond the call of duty. “Through their efforts, they bring hope to victims, restore order to chaos and remind us of the power of integrity and perseverance in creating a safer world for everyone,” he writes. The book also serves as a cautionary tale to those who believe they can outsmart the law, adds Mr Yadav. “Let us work towards building a society where the fear of justice deters criminal intent and where the law is upheld as a beacon of fairness and accountability,” he piously concludes.
The reviewer is a New Delhi-based freelance writer
