An ex-DGP’s policing tales, with wit and humour
Book Title: In and Out of Step
Author: GS Aujla
Jupinderjit Singh
From rescuing a wailing bridegroom on the road during Emergency days to code songs employed by smugglers, to the tale of a donkey on the border and spice girls from UK police, former Punjab DGP GS Aujla’s book ‘In and Out of Step’ takes the reader on a delightful journey.
A compilation of writing, especially Middles and features which appeared in newspapers, mainly The Tribune, the short pieces carry enriching lessons of life with a subtle touch of wit and humour.
The writer’s thoughts and stories gallop through the pages — of the life of a trainee in the police academy, the challenges of service while dealing with criminals wielding ‘desi katta’ or country-made guns in Bihar in contrast to sophisticated weapons and modern policing in Punjab, built on the long tradition of British police history and work culture.
As a bonus, one gets immersed in erudite writing, ornamented with rich vocabulary, to build on the repertoire of terms and finer elements of the why and how of the police uniform, parade, horse-riding, weapons and architectural insights.
The title of the book may suggest an indulgence in revelations, but the author does not stray into that sphere. He clears it early in the book. “I was neither a Sherlock Homes nor a Robin Hood in uniform… I am more of an observer than a protagonist — a part of the audience than the stage.”
In several passages, the author reflects in a terse yet powerful manner on political, social or policing issues. Like when the first contingent of officers completed their training under a special Indo-Afghan initiative at the Police Academy in Phillaur in 2002, the passouts made a unique request to the author, the director of the academy: “Don’t send us back to Afghanistan. We would be happy to serve in Punjab Police.”
Anecdotes from his trainee days in Mussoorie where the author hummed in the canteen, “Hari ki canteen ho, Sath Nazneen ho, Kuch meetha namkeen ho”, bring a nostalgic smile. There’s the hilarious recounting of how smugglers in Gurdaspur played the song ‘Watan ki aabru khatre mein hai’ on loudspeakers to raise an alarm about a police raid.
The book also takes the reader through journeys across the world. You can pick any chapter to read, and will feel quite at home, in and not out of step.
