annexure i proforma for secondary data from aec,...

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ANNEXURE I

PROFORMA FOR SECONDARY DATA FROM AEC, CRIME BRANCH, MUMBAI POLICE

1. Name

2. Age at the time of first arrest

3. Date of arrest

4. u/s

5. C.R. No and CC No

6. Address

7. Previous record, if any and details

8. Whether charge sheet filed

9. If yes, date of filing charge sheet

10. Occupation of the complainant

11. Status of the case (Bail granted, charge sheet filed, trial on, discharged, acquitted

convicted)

12. Period of sentence (if any)

13. Whether any co accused

14. If yes, how many & names of co- accused

15. Preventive detention if any (MPDA, NSA, Chapter case, Externment, 151 B. P. Act).

16. If yes date of action taken and period of detention

17. If member of gang and name of gang

18. Present by in custody or released

19. If yes, where (Name of lock-up/ prison)

20. If released, how (bail, acquital/ discharge, completed sentence)

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ANNEXURE II

PROCESSES FROM ARREST TO AFTER RELEASE

I. Events leading to first arrest

• How • When • Response of family/relatives • Response of friends/neighbours • Response of employer • Response of police

II. Life in police custody/prison

• Contact with family • Contact with lawyer/legal aid • Friends inside • Friends outside • Illnesses • Experiences with CJS – police, prison and judiciary • View of self • View of future

III. Events after release A. First day after release

• First meal • First destination • First evening • First night • Going to family, friend’s house, contact made inside prison, railway

station/streets B. First month

• Shelter • Food • Clothing • Illness • Finding work • Past-time/leisure/evening hours • Encounters with police • Encounters with old friends/contacts made in prison • Encounters with neighbours/relatives/community • Attending court dates

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• Handling emergencies/crisis situations C. First three to six months

• Settling down • Work/subsistence • Health problems • Relationships • Avoiding re-arrest/police action • Conflicts with family/friends/community • Legal matters/legal assistance • Addictions

D. First six months to a year

• Sustaining work • Sustaining relationships • Stabilizing shelter • Stabilizing health • Handling emotions • Handling addictions • Addressing problems vis a vis police/court • View of future

IV. Events leading to second/subsequent arrest(s) • How • When • Response of family/relatives • Response of friends/neighbours • Response of employer • Response of police

V. Events after release from second/subsequent arrest(s) • How different from first time – first day, first month. • Response of family, relatives, friends, employer • Response of police • View of self • View of future

VI. Managing life

• Shelter • Subsistence • Illnesses • Leisure/evenings • Friends/girlfriend/wife • Addictions

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• Employment • Police • Neighbourhood • Self Image

VII. Life chances

• Any plans – immediate, short term and long term • Supports available – family, relatives, friends • Managing life/work with court cases/police • Possibility of ‘getting out’ of criminal nexus • Supports needed to ‘get out’ • Getting married/managing marriage • View of self

VIII. Most important areas where support is needed to ‘get out’ of crime and live ‘crime-free’ life

• Shelter • Employment • Managing addictions • Managing friends • Managing family relationships • Managing intimate/companion relationships • Managing isolation/loneliness • Managing illnesses

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ANNEXURE III

INTERVIEW SCHEDULE FOR PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS

Date: I. Personal Information

1. Name:

2. Age:

3. Address:

4. Living with:

5. Family Profile:

Person/relationship Age Education Occupation Monthly Income

Mother

Father

Brother

Sister

6. Education:

7. Work background:

8. Monthly income:

9. Marital status: II. Arrest Record

10. First arrest:

11. Date of arrest:

12. Under section(s):

13. Motive: 1) property 2) property with use of force 3) violent/gang related

14. Co-accused:

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15. If Yes, number:

16. Who were your co-accused? 1) school/college friends 2) friends from the area 3) friends made at workplace 4) any other (criminal nexus)

17. Current status of case(s):

18. Date of release from police/prison custody:

19. Period within which second arrest took place:

20. Date of release:

21. Subsequent arrests (number and sequence):

22. Current status of cases:

23. Preventive detention:

24. If Yes, type:

25. Where did/will you go after release from arrest? 1) home 2) friend 3) prison

contact 4) any other III. Family Support

26. Family support after arrest:

27. Type of support: 1) legal aid 2) mulakat in police/prison custody 3) court visit 4) arranging surety/cash bail

28. Parental conflicts in the family:

29. If yes, nature of conflict: 1) violent 2) arguments 3) any other

30. Source of conflict: 1) alcohol 2) financial 3) affairs 4) your situation 5) any

other IV. Support from Criminal Nexus

31. Support from criminal nexus during first/subsequent arrest(s): 1) legal aid 2) financial support to family 3) food/comforts in prison

32. Did you ever fall seriously ill while you were in custody?

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33. If yes, who supported you through this period? 1) police/prison administration 2) family 3) contacts made in police/prison custody/criminal nexus 4) friends 5) any other

34. Have you seriously fallen ill after release? 1) Yes 2) No

35. If yes, who supported you through this period? 1) family 2) contacts made in

police/prison custody/criminal nexus 3) friends 4) any other V. Addictions

36. Do you drink/do drugs?

37. How often do you drink/do drugs?

38. If yes, do you drink/do drugs alone or with friends? 1) alone 2) with friends

39. If with friends, who are they? 1) friends from the area 2) friends made in custody/criminal nexus 3) any acquaintance 4) any other

VI. Contact with Criminal World

40. Are you in touch with any of your contacts from your days in custody/criminal nexus?

41. If yes, nature of contact: 1) casual (hi-bye) 2) occassionally meet 3) regularly in

touch 4) any other – VII. Reasons for Entry and Continuation in Crime

42. What would you say was the main reason for getting into crime in the first place? 1) family conflicts 2) friends 3) lifestyle related/additions 4) problems at school/college 5) need for money 6) any other

43. What would you say was the main reason for continuation in crime? 1) contacts

made in custody/criminal nexus 2) old friendships 3) need for money 4) lifestyle related/addictions 5) police harassment 6) lack of family support 7) lack of shelter 8) any other

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ANNEXURE IV

INTERVIEW GUIDE FOR RESPONDENTS

Name Age Education Family details Family situation during childhood Description of the area/neighbourhood Friend circle during adolescence Work background and history First incident/involvement in violence/crime Events leading to first arrest Journey through crime world Gang structure, hierarchy, activities, spread, earnings, and conflicts Nexus with police/administration/politics Reasons for entry into crime world and continuance Influence of family, education, peers on criminal life Experiences with the CJS and impact on criminal life Good police officer / bad police officer Good prison officer/ bad prison officer Good judge / bad judge Good lawyer / bad lawyer

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Experiences of being a gang member - Positives and negatives - Rules of entry and exit - Values and norms - Use of violence – who, when, why

Attempts to get out of crime Views on:

- Factors influencing entry into and exit from crime world - Religion and God - Gender relations - CJS - State - Crime and punishment

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ANNEXURE V

INTERVIEW GUIDE FOR POLICE AND PRISON OFFICER 1. Profile of youth involved in extortion related crimes

2. Reasons for entry of youth into crime / gang world

3. Factors influencing their continuance in crime

4. Role of CJS in controlling / abetting gang related crime

5. Nexus between underworld, CJS, bureaucracy and politics

6. Measures to combat gang related / organised crime

7. Need and type of reforms needed in CJS

8. Possibility of exit from crime world – who, how, when

9. Role of social work intervention – why, when, how

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ANNEXURE VI

INTERVIEW GUIDE FOR LAWYER

1. About yourself – experience of defending gang members

2. Views on your client – family background, how deeply involved in the criminal nexus, chances of getting out of crime world

3. Details about the crime committed by your client / his involvement in crime

4. Changing trends of under world activities

5. History and growth of gangs

6. Future of under world

7. Values and norms of gangs

8. Corruption in judiciary

9. Criminal-police-bureacracy-politician nexus

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ANNEXURE VII

INTERVIEW GUIDE FOR SOCIAL WORKER

1. Changing trend of under world activities

2. History and growth of gangs


4. Values and norms of gang land


6. Reasons for entry into gangs / crime

7. Factors responsible for continuation in crime

8. Possibilities of exit from crime

9. Type of support needed for rehabilitation

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ANNEXURE VIII

INTERVIEW GUIDE FOR FAMILY MEMBER

1. Views on the respondent

2. Incidents and reasons leading to entry into crime

3. Relations with family members and relatives

4. Attempts to get out of crime

5. Role of family support

6. Role of police in rehabilitation

7. Need for support / help towards rehabilitation

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ANNEXURE IX

INTERVIEW GUIDE FOR JOURNALIST

1. Changing trends in under world activities

2. Growth of gangs – trends

3. Reasons for entry of youth into crime / gang world

4. Factors influencing their continuance in crime


6. Values and norms of gangs

7. Corruption in judiciary


9. Possibility of exit from crime world – who, how, when

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ANNEXURE X

Total No. of Arrests Head 2004 2005 2006

18 to 30

Total Arrest

18 to 30

Total Arrest

18 to 30

Total Arrest

Murder 288 448 170 305 244 403 Attempt tp Commit Murder 137 231 182 336 196 318 Coupeble Homicide 7 19 3 19 5 11 Rape 142 225 142 243 168 264 Kidnaping & Abduction 127 175 144 236 133 220 Dacoity 118 186 151 226 82 106 Pre. Of Dacoity 222 292 162 257 204 256 Robbery 300 431 418 551 312 443 Burglary 1031 1510 986 1658 1171 1663 Auto Thefts 718 951 693 1029 797 1060 Other Thefts 2464 3595 2226 3693 2434 3830 Riots 759 1422 1130 2192 1101 2192 Criminal Breach of Trust 213 370 179 462 210 458 Cheating 465 1067 412 1122 555 1160 Counterfeiting 29 58 26 51 34 67 Arson 14 23 14 82 6 7 Hurt 3853 6442 3905 6484 4214 6891 Dowry Death 14 34 23 69 28 50 Molestation 199 355 247 426 270 458 Sexual Harrassment 50 91 79 159 54 90 Cruelty By Husband 310 813 363 1069 409 1166 Importation Of Girls 0 0 0 0 2 2 Death Bt Negligence 424 655 350 926 345 693 Other IPC 5413 9490 3472 6657 4267 7877 Total 17297 28883 15477 28252 17241 29685

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ANNEXURE XII

LIFE SKETCHES OF RESPONDENTS Bhima

The researcher met Bhima in prison. He looked in his late teens; fair, diminutive and very thin. His

interview lasted for one session of about two hours duration.

Bhima is twenty three years old from a village in the sugar belt of Western Maharashtra. He has studied till

the IXth in Marathi medium. His father passed away of alcohol abuse in 2003 at the age of fifty. He used to

work as a farm labour and also did hamali (lifting luggage) of cement bags in a cement dealer shop. His

mother is around forty five years of age. She works as farm labour and earns about Rs. 25/- per day. Bhima

has a younger brother who is about sixteen years old and has studied till the VIIth Standard. He works as a

waiter in a restaurant in the village earning Rs. 600/- p.m. Bhima’s family stays in a rented house, as their

own house is in a dilapidated state. They own about two to three gunthas of land and grow rice on it. The

produce is not enough to sustain the family, and Bhima, his younger brother and his mother have to work to

sustain themselves.

Bhima had to give up his education due to our financial problems after his father’s death. When his father

was alive, he used to drink every day. Sometimes he would get abusive with his mother. Bhima would feel

very bad when he would beat his mother.

After leaving his studies, Bhima started working in a restaurant in the village, as a waiter, for around six

months at a salary of Rs. 500/- p.m. plus food. Later, he took up a job with a lottery ticket agent and would

earn between Rs. 25/- to 30/- per day. He worked here for around three years.

One day, he had a major fight with his mother over his habit of chewing tobacco and ran away from home.

He reached the taluka place of the nearby district and found himself a job of a waiter in a restaurant at a

salary of Rs. 1800/- p.m. along with free food and stay. He worked in this restaurant for two years. He

would go home twice a year during diwali and ganpati festivals and save around Rs. 10,000/- to give his

mother each time.

Bhima fought over a petty issue with some of the waiters at the restaurant, in a drunken state one night. He

left the restaurant that night, took a ST bus and got off at another taluka place of the next district. He was

able to get a job in a beer bar as a waiter at wages of Rs. 80/- per day. About a month later, two of the

waiters working in the bar were arrested by the police for threatening the local MLA to pay Rs. 5 lacs or

else his children would be killed.

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Bhima was subsequently arrested as an accomplice in the case. Bhima claims innocence and says that the

police have framed him to strengthen the case of extortion against the other two waiters. Their families

came forward and have bailed them out. Bhima’s family knows about his arrest but no one has come to

meet him in prison or to arrange for his bail.

Bhima did not have a lawyer in his case, but he has now been given one with the help of a social worker

from an organisation which works in the prison with under trial prisoners. Bhima hopes his judge would

release him on Personal Recognisance Bond (PR Bond), since he does not have anyone to bail him out on

surety bail. Otherwise, he would have to wait till his trail gets over and hopes that he will be acquitted in

the case.

Bhima feels he cannot go home after his release, due to the social stigma of arrest and imprisonment. He

plans to stay in Mumbai till his case gets over (in case he is released on PR Bond) or move back to the

same place where he was worked as a waiter for three years. He feels his employer might take him back as

he had good relations with him. He plans to work for a couple of years and return to his village. He feels he

can ‘wipe out’ the social stigma through his hard work and honesty of purpose. In the long run, Bhima

would like to settle down in his village, get married and stay as one family with his mother and brother.

Rocky

The researcher met Rocky in prison. He was referred to the researcher by a jailor. Rocky was of wheatish

complexion, well-built, of medium height and had an air of confidence about him. His interview was spread

over two sessions lasting about four hours.

Rocky is twenty years old. He is from Northern India and has studied till first year B.A. His father is a

farmer, aged around 47 years and owns about eight acres of agricultural land. They cultivate rice, wheat

and mustard during the year. The annual income from agriculture is around Rs. 2 lacs. His mother is a

housewife and is not literate. He has a younger brother, who is studying in college in second year B.Com

and a sister studying in a private school in the Xth Standard. They live in a self-owned large house with

four big rooms. Rocky comes from a ‘normal’ family; there are no conflicts at home. They enjoy good

relations with their neighbours and his father is a respected figure in the village.

Rocky was an average student in school. He was good in science subjects and got 70% in the Xth standard.

But in the XIIth standard examination he fared badly, scoring only 42%, mainly due to the change of

environment from the village school to higher secondary school, which was 7 km away from the village.

He and his friends would travel by bikes and life changed to the fast lane. Once in college, they had to go to

the city every day, which was 35 km away from home. They were now spending most of their time driving

the bike, going for movies, chasing girls and having fun. Gradually Rocky lost interest in his studies and

dropped out.

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Rocky always wanted to do something for the nation, and when he cleared the admission process to join the

army, his childhood dream came true. After completing his basic one-year training, he did a six-month

training to become a commando with the National Security Guards. He was subsequently posted in the

North and the North-East in counter-insurgency operations. In one such operation, his unit had to tackle

insurgents who had held a family hostage in a village. The unit commander decided to take the risk of

ambushing the insurgents and rescuing the family, against the orders of the battalion head. Even though the

operation was a success, the rescue team head was dismissed from service after a court martial, for

disobeying orders. Rocky felt disillusioned with the army and resigned.

He returned home to his family; his father was very upset with his decision. He was without a job for six

months and went into depression. But his fire to fight militancy was still alive. He gathered a few of his

friends from his village, his college and even one from the army to form an anti-militancy team. They

purchased revolvers from the illegal arms market (it was possible to do this since they lived in an

insurgency prone area). They began collecting information on militants and started either eliminating them

or passing on information about them to the para-military forces and the army. They also started targeting

corrupt police officials.

Rocky’s family came to know about their activities and strongly opposed it, but he was adamant. He

decided to move to the city and took a place on rent. The group gradually went into extortion of builders

and businessmen known for amassing black money, to fund their activities. They developed connections

with known gangs across the country. During one such operation, Rocky and one member of his gang had

come to Mumbai. The police had information about their arrival in the city and Rocky was ‘picked up’,

while his friend escaped before the police could arrive. He was kept in illegal custody for a month before

being produced in court. Rocky has been charged under MCOCA and extortion.

Rocky’s father came to know about his arrest and came to Mumbai to meet him in prison. He told Rocky

that if he was willing to change his ways, the family was willing to bail him out. Rocky refused any support

from the family; he did not want to admit defeat.

Rocky’s friend comes to meet him on some of his court dates from his native town. His gang has

disintegrated. He is now trying to take the help of some gang to get out on bail. He is not sure which path

his life will take.

Umesh

The researcher met Umesh in prison. He came to know about him through his co-accused Bittu whom the

researcher had earlier interviewed. Umesh looked very young; he was fair, of medium height, thin and with

an innocent face. The interview with Umesh lasted one session of around two hours duration.

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Umesh is nineteen years of age and has studied till the VIIIth standard. His father is forty three years old.

He used to work in a cake factory as a peon near his area but had to leave his job as a result of heart

problem he developed a year ago (for which he had subsequently under go a bypass surgery). Umesh’s

mother is around thirty five years old and works as a domestic help in a few houses in the area. He has an

elder brother who works as a peon, a younger brother who is in the ninth standard and a sister who is in the

seventh standard. Umesh was working as an electrician and earning Rs. 4500/- p.m. at the time of his

arrest.

One evening, Umesh and Raju went to a beer bar in the area and had a few drinks. After this, they went to a

nearby restaurant and had food there. In their drunken state, they got into a fight with the restaurant owner

over some petty issue and ended up breaking furniture and glass in the restaurant and ran away. A month

later, Umesh and Bittu had a few drinks and went to the same restaurant to grab a bite. They did not pay, as

they did not have enough cash on them. Bittu also demanded Rs. 100/- from the restaurant owner

(according to Bittu, he had only asked for a loan). The owner refused and they had a fight over it. The next

day, the restaurant owner complained to the police about the three of them. All three were arrested by the

police on charges of extortion.

Rajesh regrets his involvement in the fight with the restaurant owner. He has been granted a bail of Rs.

15,000/-. His brother comes to meet him on his court dates and is trying to get him out on bail42. Rajesh

feels he has learnt his lesson and would keep away from ‘trouble’ in future.

Bittu

The researcher met Bittu in prison. He was of medium height, dark-complexioned, rather thin and seemed

like the quiet sort. His interview was spread over two sessions lasting about four hours.

Bittu is twenty two years old and educated till the VIIIth standard. He stays with his family in the same

slum settlement as Umesh. His father was fifty two years of age when passed away nine years back. He was

a fisherman by profession. He died by drowning in the sea, while he had gone fishing. His mother is around

forty years of age. She is illiterate and does domestic work in nearby buildings, earning about Rs. 1500/-

pm. He has a younger brother named Raju, who is also with him in prison, arrested in the same case. He is

twenty years old and has studied till VIth standard. He was working in a housekeeping agency and earning

Rs. 2000/- pm.

42 Rajesh was bailed out by his family three months after data collection in prison was over.

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Bittu’s mother’s and father’s families live in the same area. His maternal uncle and father would go for

fishing together. His father met his mother through this uncle; they fell in love and got married. His father

is from Nepal whereas his mother is a Gujarati. His maternal grandfather lives in the village; he owns

agricultural land and is a farmer by occupation. Bittu’s aaji (paternal grandmother) stays very close to their

house. His paternal grandfather was a watchman in a nearby university. His paternal uncles also live in the

same area and work in the same university in the furniture making section.

Bittu was interested in studies, but had to give up after his father passed away. Being the eldest, he had to

take up his family responsibilities and start earning.

Most of his friends are from the area and his school. They have been around for a long time. They hang out

together in the evening from six to eight thirty pm near the mandir.

After he left school, Bittu worked under a welding contractor as a helper for one and a half years. I became

skilled in this work and was earning Rs. 3500/- pm. Later, he got work on contract basis in the university;

his job was to cut grass and he was earning salary was around Rs. 4500/- pm. He worked here for around

six months, but had to leave the job as he got an attack of malaria. Bittu now does odd jobs in the area as a

helper – painting work, tiling work, wiring work, etc. Even though he is a skilled welder, he did not go

back to it. Welding work involved working in tall buildings hanging from outside and he is scared of

heights.

In 2007, Bittu got into a fight with a friend over a petty issue, in a state of drunkenness. He pushed his

friend and he fell on the ground and got hit on the head. he was arrested in a case of simple hurt (section

324 IPC), kept in the police lock-up for two days and then sent to judicial custody. He was released on bail

of Rs. 3000/- by his aaji after sixteen days in prison.

On May 2009, Umesh and Bittu had a few drinks together and decided to go for a movie. Before setting of

to see the movie, they went to the same restaurant for to grab a bite. After they ate, they did not pay, as they

did not have enough cash on them. Bittu also demanded Rs. 100/- from the restaurant owner (according to

Bittu, he had only asked for a loan). The owner refused and they had a fight over it. The next day, the

restaurant owner complained to the police about the three of them. All three were arrested by the police on

charges of extortion.

Bittu hopes that his uncles would bail him out and find him a job after his release. He is confident his

mother and aaji will take him back. He regrets his involvement in unnecessary fights in the area. He now

want to find a stable job, get married, settle down and take care of his mother and younger brother. He is

apprehensive of police harassment after his release. He would try to convince his family to sell off their

property and move to a far off suburb to deal with social stigma and police action.

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Harish

The researcher met Harish in prison. He was tall, of wheatish complexion, rather well-built but had a lazy

air about him. He seemed like a person who was disinterested in life. The interview with Harish was spread

over two sessions and lasted around four hours.

Harish is twenty two years of age. He is educated till the IVth standard. He lives with his family in the

western suburbs in a slum opposite a government staff colony. His father passed away two years back (in

2007) of a heart attack; he was sixty five years of age then. He was a security guard. His mother is around

fifty five old. She is handicapped since the last four to five years, due to a spinal injury. She has swollen

legs and walks with great difficulty.

Harish has three sisters who are all younger to him. The eldest one is around nineteen; she is SSC passed

and currently doing a course in beauty care. The younger one is around sixteen, studying in Class VII in a

municipal school near their house. His youngest sister is fifteen years of age studying in the same school in

Class VIII.

Harish’s father came from Nepal around thirty five years back. He came to Mumbai and settled in the area.

It was marshy land (khadi) then. People, mostly migrants to the city, built their houses there. It became an

established slum over time. Harish’s extended family also stays nearby. His maternal uncle, who passed

away about ten years ago, had affectionately named Harish, Teja43. He is still known by that name in his

area.

The family owns two rooms in the slum. One of the rooms has been let out on rent of Rs. 2000/- pm and a

deposit of Rs. 30,000/-. His sister gets Rs. 1500/- pm for the work she does in the beauty parlour, as a

trainee. His family environment was peaceful and relations between his parents were good. In 2004, his

mother fell seriously ill; she was in coma for six months.

Life changed for Harish after his mother’s illness. His father would work in the night shift as a security

guard, would cook for the children in the morning and send them to school. It was tough on him. Harish

started helping out at home – preparing the food, looking after his sisters, etc. He was around fifteen or

sixteen then. It was around that time that he gradually lost interest in studies.

After he left school, he got a job of sweeping the streets in the area on contract basis. He worked here for

two years. In 2006, I got a sweeper’s job where he would work in two shifts. He would work in the night

43 Teja was the on-screen name of the villain in a very popular Hindi film of the seventies, Zanjeer, which was played by the popular film actor of that time, Ajit. Zanjeer became a cult film of its time. Ajit’s portrayal of Teja and his clash with the hero of the film, an honest and upright police officer, essayed by Amitabh Bachchan, made the film a huge hit with the audiences. It was also the first major hit of Amitabh Bachchan and paved the way for his journey towards becoming a legendary personality in the Indian film industry.

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shift from 11.00 pm to 3.30 am and for the day shift from 8.00 am to 12.00 noon. He was paid Rs. 3000/-

for the night shift and Rs. 1800/- for the day shift. He would keep Rs. 500/- for his personal expenses and

would give the rest to his father for the household and medical expenses of his mother. His father was then

working as a watchman in a housing society and earning around Rs. 5000/- pm. Most of the money went in

his mother’s treatment.

In 2006, Harish got into a fight one day with a group of boys, who were studying in his school but staying

in a nearby area. One of the boys from their group had been eve teasing the sister of one of his friends.

Harish’s group beat up the boys. A case under section 324 IPC (simple hurt) was registered and Harish was

arrested. His uncle got him released the next day from the police station itself. Life continued as normal

after that and he went back to work after he was released from the lock up.

After this case happened, when he would go for work in the night shift, he had to pass the Police Chowki

and the constables who knew him would often harass him. They would ask him for information about other

boys in the area who into petty thieving. They wanted to make him a khabri (informer). He once had

complained about this to the ACP and the harassment had stopped for some time, but a few days it

restarted. Harish was fed up of this harassment.

In 2007, he got involved in another lafda (trouble). Some of the boys from the area would hang out outside

a nearby college. One day, one of his friends had gone there to meet his girl friend. Some of the boys were

hanging out and one of them snatched a gold chain from one of newly admitted students in the college. The

boys sold the chain to a jeweler and blew up the money over the next two to three days, eating out and

drinking. Harish too joined in the celebrations.

After four days, they were arrested and sent to fourteen days of police custody. While in police custody,

Harish was beaten a lot by the police, because of his earlier case. The constables in the police station knew

his background and had a negative impression about him.

After a week, Harish was sent to judicial custody. He was granted surety bail of Rs. 5000/-. His uncle, who

works as a security guard stood surety for him and bailed him out. In March 2008, he was re-arrested as a

warrant had been issued against him for not attending court dates in both the earlier cases. He was in prison

till December 2008 and was discharged in both the cases.

After getting released from prison, he came home. Within four to five days, he got involved in the present

case of extortion of a builder. He had got information that the manager of the builders had illegal properties

and a lot of ill gotten wealth. He planned to extort some money out of him. He shared this plan with my

friend in the area Parvez.

They went to the manager’s office and threatened him with a knife. But he shouted for help and a crowd

collected outside his office. Harish and Parvez locked the manager in his office and ran away. The builders

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association took out a morcha to the police station and demanded action against them. Harish was ‘wanted’

for three months. During this period, he lived with his mami (aunt) who lived in a far off western suburb.

Harish was arrested from his mami’s home. His co-accused was also arrested the same day.

After our arrest, they were kept ‘extra’ (in illegal detention) for six days. They were tortured by the police,

due to the pressure from the builder lobby. Parvez has still not recovered from the after effects of the

torture. After being produced before the magistrate, they were remanded to police custody for ten days. The

police also charged them in a case of robbery (u/s 392 IPC). This case got discharged in April 2009, as

there was no property recovered from them.

Harish does not have a lawyer. His youngest sister comes to meet him in court on his dates. His mother was

again admitted to hospital in April 2009. he do not know how she is now. Parvez mother comes to meet

him in court. The judge has granted cash bail of Rs. 7000/- a month back. Harish has not made any

application in court so far for reduction of bail or release on PR Bond. He stares at an uncertain future.

Harish plans to sell off his house and move out of the area to a far off suburb in the long run. He would like

to set up a tea stall to earn his livelihood. He now wants to take care of his mother and sisters and live

peacefully.

Murli

The researcher met Murli in prison. He was tall, of wheatish complexion, well-built and confident looking.

His interview lasted one session of about two hours duration.

Murli is about twenty-two years old. He hails U.P. from a village. His father is about fifty years old and

works as a machine operator in a tile making factory in the nearby city, earning a salary of Rs. 3000/- pm.

His mother is around thirty five and a house wife. Murli is the eldest of the siblings. He has three younger

brothers and three sisters. The eldest one is around eighteen or nineteen and studies in the VIIth standard

and the youngest is around three years of age.

His family condition is very poor. His father’s income is not enough to feed the family. Murli was good at

studies, but had to leave school due to financial problems at home. He started working as a ‘loader’ of stone

chips near his village. He was nine years old then. After a few months, he went to the city and got work

under a limestone and marble dealer. He stayed at his house and worked as a domestic help. The employer

gave him shelter, food and Rs. 1200/- pm. He would send most of his earnings home. He worked here for

five months. One day, the employer asked him to clean the toilet. He refused to do this work as he was a

Brahmin. He left the job and went to a nearby city.

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He met a person who said he was a village headman and also a zamindar. He took Murli home with a

promise that he would pay Rs. 1500/- pm in return for working in his house and his farms. But he was

treated like a bonded labour. One night, he escaped from his house with the help of the zamindar’s mother.

He reached his aunt’s place, who was from a well-to-do family. He worked in their farms and lived in their

house for the next three years. Murli wanted to do something to improve his family situation. He met a

friend from his village who worked in a sari making factory in Gujarat. He accompanied him to work in the

factory. He worked in two shifts every alternate day and earned about Rs. 4500/- pm.

Murli worked here for about two months. Unfortunately, the factory caught fire one day and every thing got

burnt down. Some of the workers died. Many people left the job out of fear. Murli too had to leave and he

finally reached Mumbai with his friends. He got himself a job under a contractor who dealt in plaster of

paris. He stayed in the construction site and worked under him at a wage of Rs. 80/- per day. He sent home

Rs. 2000/- every month. He worked here for a year. He then took up a new job as a security guard. It was a

twelve-hour shift job and he got a salary of Rs. 4500/- pm. He worked here for three years and would send

home Rs. 4000/- every two months.

One day, he met the owner of the security agency and requested him to post him to a better site. He was

posted in a bungalow, which was owned by a diamond merchant. He worked here for a year and a half. The

bungalow was not inhabited on a regular basis. The owner would come with his friends or family once in a

while to stay for a night or for a few days.

It was around this time that the owner of the bungalow started receiving extortion calls from someone. The

diamond merchant filed a police complaint and a trap was laid by the police to arrest the offenders. The co-

accused in his case was arrested red-handed receiving the money from the spot from the complainant. On

further interrogation, the police picked up Murli from his work place.

Murli has not informed his family about his arrest. He is very upset with the police for framing him under

‘false charges’ and with his employer for not helping him in his time of crisis. He does not have a lawyer in

his case. He is hopeful that he will get acquitted in his case in court. He keeps to himself in prison.

After his release from prison, Murli plans to go to his employer to get back his money he had ‘saved’ from

his salary and find some work. He feels that any person who is willing to work hard can find employment.

He feels a heavy sense of responsibility towards his family and cares for his parents immensely. In the long

run, he would like to get married and settle down in his village with his parents.

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Ilyas

The researcher met Ilyas in prison. He was the jawabdar (monitor) of the baba section in prison. He was

tall, fair-complexioned, good-looking and with pleasing manners. The interview with Ilyas was spread over

three sessions and lasted around six hours.

Ilyas is 26 years of age. He was born in the Middle East and lived there with his family till I was two years

old, when his family shifted to their native town in the South India. His father is around fifty two years old.

He was a driver with the Indian Embassy in the Middle East for thirty eight years and retired two years

back. His mother is a housewife, and is around forty seven years old. He has three brothers and a sister. His

eldest brother is HSC passed, and is a computer engineer. Another brother is SSC passed and is doing a

three year course in AC maintenance and repairs. His sister is studying in her XIth standard and his

youngest brother is studying in the Vth standard.

Ilyas was very good in sports in school and was also in the NCC. He was average in studies. Ilyas says he is

from a normal family. There was no tension at home and all their needs were taken care of. Ilyas fell in

love with a girl when he was in class VIII. She was a Hindu girl named Sneha. His family knew about the

relationship but did not take it too seriously.

After passing his XIIth standard, Ilyas appeared for the examinations to join the Indian Army and was

selected for General Duty (GD). He was sent for training for nine months. However, he left the army with

one and half months left for completion of his training, as he had to go urgently home but was not granted

leave. He came to know that Sneha was being forcefully married off by her family within four days.

He reached home, spoke to his family and told them about his plans to elope with Sneha. His family

initially agreed to the plan. But when Ilyas reached home with Sneha, his mother opposed their decision to

elope and get married. There was Hindu-Muslim tension in the town due to the activities of a right-wing

organisation.

The auto rickshaw driver who had brought them home was an activist of the right-wing organisation. He

informed Sneha’s brother and he along with other activists accosted Ilyas and Sneha on the road after they

left home. They beat up Ilyas and took Priya away. As planned, they got her married against her wishes

three days later.

Ilyas was furious with the auto driver. Six days after she got married, he attacked the driver with a sword.

He became ‘wanted’ by the police for four days before he was finally arrested. Ilyas’s journey into crime

had begun.

He refused to take any help from his family, as he was very angry with them. He met a gang leader in

prison who gave him emotional support and also bailed him out. Soon, he started working for the gang and

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was into extortions and other gang activities. He was re-arrested in cases relating to attempt to murder and

extortion. This time too, he was bailed out by the gang.

After his release from prison, he lived with his friends and gang members and finally reached Mumbai. He

tried to get out of the crime world by taking up a job of a coordinator with an agency that supplied junior

artistes to the film industry. However, over a period of time, he came into contact with people with criminal

connections again and was re-arrested in Mumbai in a case of extortion.

Ilyas was released by his family on bail this time, due the efforts of a social worker he met in prison. After

his release, his family tried to take him home with them but he refused, saying he would join them in a few

days. The family has no contact with Ilyas now and do not know about his whereabouts. The researcher

tried to get in touch with Ilyas over the telephone after his release, but was able to speak to him only once.

Ilyas promised to meet him after a few days but has not got in touch with the researcher since.

Fazlu

The researcher met Fazlu in the prison. His was selected as a respondent from the list of cases provide by

the AEC of Crime Branch, Mumbai Police. Fazlu was housed in the baba section of the prison. He was

very frail looking and dark complexioned; and there was an air of simplicity about him. The interview with

him lasted around four hours and was spread over three sessions.

Fazlu is twenty two years of age. He lives with his family in an established and large slum settlement in the

western suburbs of Mumbai. His parents are originally from eastern U.P. Fazlu was born in Mumbai and

has never gone to his village. His father is around fifty years old and works as a tailor (cutting master) in a

garment factory in central Mumbai, earning Rs. 4000/- per month. His mother passed away in 2006 (soon

after his arrest) at the age of forty six. Both his sisters are married; one lives with her husband and children

in Mumbai and the other in Delhi. His brother too is married and lives in Nagpur, working as a turner-fitter

in a spare-parts unit.

Fazlu’s family environment was normal, except that they faced financial problems. But there was no

scarcity at home in terms of food, clothes, school uniform, books etc. They studied in municipal schools

near their home. His mother was perennially ill, being an asthma patient.

Fazlu was average in studies, but was not too interested. When he completed his seventh standard, he

dropped out of school and joined as a trainee in an electrical repair shop near his house. He worked in the

shop for four years and learnt about repairing of fans and motor-winding. Later he also learnt wiring under

an electrician and in six months’ time, he began taking up wiring jobs in his area, earning around Rs.

2000/- a month.

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Around October 2005, Fazlu’s mother took very ill and she had to be admitted to hospital. They needed

money desperately for her treatment. He knew a person named Abdul, also an electrician; he shared his

financial woes with him. Abdul told him about a ‘job’ for which I would be paid Rs. 5000/-. He had to fire

at someone; shoot t him in such a way that the bullet passed by the victim. Fazlu was desperate for money

and he agreed to take up the offer without thinking twice.

On the appointed day, Abdul and Fazlu went to the appointed place in South Mumbai; it was a residential

area. Fazlu fired a shot from a country-made revolver at the person (he was a diamond merchant) identified

by Abdul, as he emerged from his house. The man was shot at his legs and feel down. Fazlu and Abdul ran

from the place, caught a local train and came back to their area.

Abdul gave Fazlu the promised amount after two days. He spent the money towards the medical expenses

of his mother’s treatment. No one at home suspected that the money had been earned through an extortion

crime. Some months later, one of his co-accused, Anwar, was arrested. He named Abdul, who in turn

named Fazlu, leading to their arrest in January, 2006.

Fazlu has been arrested under MCOCA for his involvement in the case. His mother passed away out of the

shock of his arrest. Fazlu deeply regrets his involvement in crime. He has been in prison since the last four

years, since his father is unable to arrange his bail amount. He is hopeful of an acquittal in the case, due to

lack of evidence against him. The judge has provided him a lawyer through the legal aid panel.

Fazlu’s father plans to send him to their native village after his release. He is confident that he will find

some work there on the basis of his skills. He says that he has learnt the lesson of his life and will abide by

his father’s wishes now.

Jeevan

The researcher met Jeevan in the prison. He was housed in the high security cell (anda barrack) of the

prison. He was identified by the prison authorities as a member of one of the known criminal gangs. The

researcher was allowed to interview him after taking ‘special permission’ from the prison authorities.

Jeevan was short in height, thin and dark complexioned. He was very well dressed and spruced up and

spoke with confidence. The interview lasted for one session of about two hours.

Jeevan is thirty three years of age. He grew up in a ‘normal’ family environment in one of the established

slums in the central suburbs. The area was known for group rivalries and turf wars between youth gangs.

Jeevan was famous in the area for his notoriety. He arrested under section 324 IPC in a case of assault in a

fight with boys from his rival group in 1992. He was only sixteen then.

Jeevan was in prison for about six months before his case was discharged. After his release, life continued

as before. In the 1993 Mumbai riots, he was arrested again and this time he spent four years in prison. He

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was released in 1997, after being discharged in his case. During his imprisonment period, he lost both my

parents on account of ill health.

After his release, he moved to a nearby area and lived there for about six months. While in prison, he had

met a social worker from an organisation which works with under trial prisoners. The social worker had

given him their contact address. Jeevan approached them after his release. With their assistance, he learnt

driving. Soon, he started driving auto rickshaws in the night to earn his living.

Jeevan met his wife around this time and got married to her. He moved back to his area and started living in

his house. He soon made contacts with builders in the area and became a labour supplier. He also became a

site supervisor at construction sites in around the area.

To augment his income, he started carom and betting clubs in the area. He also developed contacts with big

builders and started working for them. He then became the chauffer of a local politician. Later he became

the body guard of a MLA and worked under him for two years. Meanwhile, his married life was not

peaceful. They argued and fought a lot. Finally, his wife left him. He later got remarried with another

woman.

Jeevan was arrested in a murder case under MCOCA. Jeevan says he was framed in the case. He has been

charged of murdering a politician; he allegedly drove the car and shot the victim. He is in prison since 2006

in this case. They have kept him in the anda barrack, and identified me as a member of a prominent gang.

Jeevan lost his wife to HIV while he was in prison. He too was initially detected with HIV, which proved to

be a false alarm after a re-test. He is very frustrated with the delay in his case. His only child, a son is

currently being taken care of by his in-laws. He wants to get out of crime and move to a new city to start

life afresh. He feels that he now wants to live for his son and make him a good citizen.

Vijay

The researcher met Vijay in the prison. He was tall and well built, had long hair (ponytail) and a stubble on

his face. He looked every inch the popular image of a gang member. The researcher met him in Guruji’s

room; they struck up a conversation and Vijay almost volunteered to be interviewed. The interview was

spread over three sessions and lasted around eight hours.

Vijay is twenty five years of age. He comes from a ‘regular’ family. He has studied till the XIIth standard.

He lives with my parents in a one-room flat in central Mumbai His father is around 56 years of age and

owns paan-beedi shop near their house. His mother is around 52, and is a homemaker. Vijay is the

youngest in the family; he has three sisters and a brother. His brother is around thirty five years helps his

father in running the shop. His eldest sister is around thirty two, is married and stays with her husband not

too far from his area. His other two sisters are around thirty and twenty eight years old respectively. The

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older one is a graduate and works in a call centre, while the younger one is a post-graduate and works as an

insurance agent.

Vijay was good in studies and got 64% in his SSC. He was very good in cricket. Life took a turn for the

negative after a failed love affair. He was in the XIth standard then; the girl, Lata lived in the same

building. It was a one-sided affair. Her next-door neighbour, Rohit was also after her. One day, Rohit

proposed to her and she flatly refused, leading to a fight between them. Vijay was furious with Rohit; he

attacked him with a cricket stump and injured him seriously with a broken skull. His family lodged a police

complaint. Vijay’s family intervened in the case (including paying money), and the police did not register a

case. They booked him for breaking peace and he was released the same day.

Lata was very upset with this incident and she stopped speaking to both Vijay and Rohit. Vijay was

extremely dejected and lost interest in his studies. He shifted to his village in the Konkan region and joined

an ITI course (turner-fitter) there. After a few months, he returned to Mumbai and tried proposing to Lata,

but she refused to entertain him.

Vijay dropped out of school. He worked as a watchman, supervisor, body guard, courier boy and as a driver

over the next three years. Sometime in 2004, boys from his group had a fight with another group in a dance

bar over one of the girls performing at the bar. This led to a fight and growing rivalry between them. In

February 2005, Vijay attacked one of their boys with a chopper. A case was registered against him under

section 307 IPC. However he was not arrested as the matter was again ‘settled’ at the police station level.

My family intervened again and paid money to settle the matter.

In June 2005, Vijay accompanied one of his friends, a member of a known gang, to settle a property dispute

between two parties. The situation flared up and led to a fight in which Vijay attacked one of them and

seriously injured the person. A case of 307 was registered but one of his cousins ( another member of the

same gang) intervened and a compromise was arrived at with the victim. The complaint was withdrawn and

the matter was settled.

Vijay formally joined the ‘company’ in August 2005. His family gradually came to know about his

involvement in crime but could not stop him. His job was to threaten builders. If the victim refused to pay,

he would be sent – break furniture in their office, and threaten them with dire consequences. This phase of

his life continued till 2007. In March 2007, a politician was murdered in which Vijay was involved. The

gang was given the contract to eliminate him since he was obstructing many of the SRA projects in his

area; he wanted more money. One of the financers of a large project approached the company to finish him.

Vijay became ‘wanted’ after this incident. However, he came back home in January 2008 and was arrested

through a ‘tip off’. A case of extortion was filed against him by a builder and a total of nine accused were

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arrested in the case. In the case of the murder of the politician, a total of 22 accused were arrested. Three of

them were later discharged and three are out on bail. The remaining, including their gang leader are inside.

Vijay has been provided a lawyer by the gang. He is trying for his bail but the lawyer says it is a very

difficult task44. His father is very supportive despite what has happened in the past. Vijay has decided to get

out of crime. He has moved out of the barrack where other members of his gang are housed in prison. He is

receiving psychiatric treatment for the past one year for his anger outbursts. He is also suffering from

amnesia; he does not get sleep in the night. Scenes from violent past float before his eyes and he is afraid of

crowded places. He reads the Sai Charita Manas three times a day and gets a lot of moral strength from it.

Vijay is a strong believer in destiny. He is ready to receive what fate has in store fro him with equanimity.

Farooq

The researcher met Farooq in the prison. His was selected as a respondent from the list of cases provide by

the AEC of Crime Branch, Mumbai Police. He was of medium height and build, balding and of wheatish

complexion. The interview with him last six hours and was spread over three sessions.

Farooq is thirty years old and educated up to HSC. He lives stay with his parents in a one-room house in

the western suburbs. His father is around fifty years old and works cutter in a factory. His mother is around

forty five years of age and is a home maker. He has a twenty six year old sister and a brother who is around

twenty four. His brother looks after the car rental business which was started by Farooq. There are no

conflicts in the family; the only problem is financial crunch at home, due to his father’s low income.

Farooq lived with his maternal grandparents in Kolkata during his childhood, due to their financial

condition. His grandfather was in government service and lived in government quarters. He lived there with

his two sons, daughters-in-law and his grandchildren. Farooq studied in a convent school till standard VIII

and was good in studies. Around that time, he got into bad company; he would bunk classes, roam around

and go for movies. His studies started suffering and he failed in standard VIII. His grandfather was upset

and he was sent back to Mumbai.

In Mumbai, Farooq could not get admission in any school and decided to appear for his Xth through the

private board. He joined coaching classes and took up a job to pay the fees. He worked as a helper in a

turner-fitter job in an industrial estate till he completed his Xth (in 1994). After his Xth, he joined a night

college and studied there till his XIIth.

Farooq later joined a gas agency as an office assistant at a salary of Rs. 1800/- pm and worked there for a

year. Around March 1996, he left the agency due to a conflict with the manager over the issue of long

44 Vijay had made a confession before the police of his involvement, which he did not retract when he was first produced in court. Under MCOCA, it is very difficult to get bail in these circumstances.

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working hours and poor salary. He then started learning an AC mechanic’s job in an AC repairing shop at a

stipend of Rs. 1800/- pm. Due to his work responsibilities, he could not concentrate in his studies and failed

in his XIIth standard examinations.

By 1997, he had learnt the skill of an AC mechanic and decided to leave the job. He wanted to start his own

AC repairs shop but did not have any capital. A friend offered him a job as a courier boy in multi-national

agency. From 1997 to 2004, he worked in the courier agency, later becoming a supervisor and drawing a

salary of Rs. 10000/- pm. He left the job in 2004 as he was informed by his bosses that his chances of

becoming permanent were slim.

In 2005, Farooq decided to start a car rental business. He took a bank loan and bought a car. He had to pay

monthly instalments of Rs. 15000/- to repay his loan. Gradually his business picked up and he began

making around Rs. 20000/- pm. After six months, he was making Rs. 30000/- pm, with a net income of

around Rs. 10000/- pm.

Around the beginning of 2006, he started facing financial problems due to competition from other car rental

services. He was finding it difficult to pay the instalments. One of his co-accused, Irfan, lived in the same

area and owned a taxi. Farooq shared his problems with him. He suggested an easy way to make money.

He had to call on a number from a PCO and ask the called person to call the bhai on a specific number. He

was offered good money and Farooq agreed.

In a short span of time, Farooq was making 5-6 calls a month at telephone numbers that Irfan would give

him and pass on the message to the called person. He made around Rs. 5000/- to 10000/- pm for doing this

work. He spoke to the gang leader a few times (he lived abroad and the calls were being made under his

orders). Most of the persons he made calls to were builders or businessmen. Farooq wanted to stop this

after his loans were repaid. This phase lasted for around 5-6 months.

One night, one of his co-accused went to collect money from a victim. There was a trap laid for him by the

police (based on a tip off). He was arrested collecting the money from the complainant. His interrogation

led to the arrest of Irfan which in turn led to Farooq’s arrest in May 2006. He was booked under the

MCOCA.

His family was in a state of shock initially. He explained the circumstances and gradually they came around

to accepting the reality. They have been very supportive. They regularly come for his court dates and for

mulakats in prison. They have also arranged for his lawyer. Farooq deeply regrets his involvement in crime.

His brother is looking after his business. He plans to take over after his release and try and start life afresh.

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Sharad

The researcher met Sharad in prison. He was thin, of medium height, wheatish complexioned and had a

pleasing personality. He was eager to speak to the researcher about his life. His interview was spread over

three sessions of about six hours, one of which took place at his residence after his release from prison.

Sharad is thirty six years old and studied till the third standard in a Marathi medium school in Mumbai. He

spent the early part of his childhood in a slum settlement in central Mumbai. His father committed suicide

when he was an infant. His mother moved to her brother’s place and had to put him and his sister in an

institution. Later she married a visually challenged man out of her caste and moved with him. After her

remarriage, his mother brought Sharad to live with them, while his sister continued to live in the institution.

Sharad’s step father was employed in a factory in Mumbai, but took voluntary retirement from his job and

decided to move with family to their native place in UP. Sharad did not like it in the village and ran away

from home. He came back to the area where he had spent his childhood.

Sharad lived by himself, sleeping anywhere and roaming with friends. He would get food by doing

domestic chores for people living in the area, shopping for them etc. This continued for almost three years.

Once during this phase, he met his parents by chance – they had come there to meet somebody. They tried

to take him back to the village but he refused. During this period, he studied in the local municipal school.

He liked going to school. One day his bag with books and his uniform got stolen (he used to hide and keep

it in a ‘safe’ place). With no books and uniform now, he stopped going to school.

After he stopped going to school, Sharad fell into wrong company. He was around fourteen then. They

would sit and drink together and roam the area in the night. They would get into fights with each other at

times and were into crimes such as snatching money from people and extorting money from petty

shopkeepers in the area. There was a dada in the area and he joined his gang. They were into an extortion-

cum-protection racket – of shopkeepers, illicit liquor den owners, betting clubs and small-time contractors.

Between ’91 and ’92, Sharad would visit his parents – they had shifted from the village back to Mumbai,

but he did not like the environment at home. There was constant conflict between his parents and not

enough to eat. He had to look after his step-siblings and accompany his father to the suburban railway

stations to sell lottery tickets.

Two years later, Sharad was arrested. He was charged under nineteen cases of grievous hurt, attempt to

murder and extortion. He was in prison from 1992 to 1997. All his cases were discharged finally and he

was released.

In 1992, Sharad met a social worker in prison. The social worker met his father and tried to convince him

to take Sharad out on bail. His father’s response was that he would take him back after his release. Sharad

was released in July ’97 and went to his aunt’s place. He stayed with her for six months. By then his sister

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was married and his parents had shifted to Pune. Once his father came and took him to Pune, but Sharad

did not stay there beyond twenty days.

After about six months, in July 1998, Sharad got married. His wife lived nearby and she would come and

stay at his aunt’s sometimes. She was married earlier, but was separated from her husband due to his

violent behaviour. Sharad beat up her husband and forced him to give her a divorce. He was arrested by the

police for this but his mother-in-law got him out on bail after three days.

Sharad’s life has been a story of shuttling between living at his mother-in-law’s place in Mumbai and his

father’s house in Pune. He has tried living in an independent house with his wife but got back to crime

during this period. He has done small jobs for gangs, mainly extortions and collecting protection money

from shop keepers. He has tried his hand in the legal sector too – as a watchman, liftman, helper, etc. in

housing societies and industrial estates. He also tried his hand selling tea with the help of the organisation

with which he has maintained contact on and off.

Sharad has had a turbulent relationship with his wife. He suspects her character and they have had many a

fight with each other over this. He was also charged with the rape of his sister-in-law for which he was

arrested and convicted, spending six years in prison (from 2000 to 2006). According to him, he wanted to

teach her a lesson for her loose ways (having affairs with various men in the area).

Despite all this, his wife and his mother-in-law forgave him and took him back after his release from prison

in 2006. Sharad says that his days in crime are over. The researcher met him in prison as he was re-arrested

in an old case, for not attending court dates. He has now been discharged in all his cases and lives with his

wife in his mother-in-law’s house. He says he is trying for a decent job. His wife is worried about their

future, especially since they now have two children. She complains that Sharad does not allow her to work,

as he suspects her character. His mother-in-law says that she will not render any more help to him; this is

his last chance to reform his ways.

Joseph

The researcher met Joseph in the prison. He was a frequent visitor to Guruji’s room (the venue for most of

the interviews). He one day enquired if the researcher was a journalist. The conversation led to the

discovery that Joseph was a possible respondent and he readily agreed to be interviewed. Joseph was very

tall, wiry, fair complexioned and sported a thick beard. There was a sharp, almost sinister look about him.

The interview with him was spread over four sessions and lasted around ten hours.

Joseph is thirty years old. He is originally Kerala. He is HSC passed and has completed an ITI course as a

turner-fitter from his home town. His mother lives by herself, in their self-owned house. The family also

owns coconut plantations on a twelve acre agricultural plot nearby. His father passed away of a heart attack

fifteen years back. He was a manager in a multi-national company. He has three sisters; all of them are now

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married. His eldest sister lives with her husband and a daughter in the Middle East. His second sister lives

with her husband and two daughters in the same town as his mother. His youngest sister lives in a nearby

town with her husband, a son and two daughters.

Joseph had a normal childhood. All their basic needs were met and they went to a private school. He was

good in studies till his Xth, which he passed with distinction. His father passed away during his board

exams. After his death, he had to look after the family and their farms. His studies suffered and he just

about managed to pass his XIIth board examinations.

Joseph decided to move to Mumbai in 1991 with his uncle, who worked in a yachting club as an electrician.

He joined the club as a trainee AC mechanic for a year and also joined a computer course. He lived with his

uncle in the club. After a year, his uncle left the club as he got a job in South Africa. Joseph had to leave

the job after he left as it was difficult to find accommodation in the area.

Joseph moved to Navi Mumbai with the help of an acquaintance and lived there in a rented place for

bachelors. He worked in various companies in the Thane-Belapur belt as a fitter and X-Ray welder on

contract basis for three years. Prior to his arrest, Joseph was employed in a steel manufacturing unit as an

X-Ray welder, at wages of Rs.400/- per hour. The contractor would make part payment and keep

postponing his dues. Things had reached a point where the dues had mounted to six months salary.

One day, out of frustration, Joseph went with a knife and threatened the contractor to pay his dues. The

contractor got scared and made full payment, but asked him to leave. After about a week, Joseph was

arrested, on the basis of a police complaint filed by the contractor, under extortion and section 506 IPC

(threatening to kill). Joseph was in police custody for a week and later transferred to prison. His co-worker

bailed him out after a week of stay in prison.

After his release, Joseph felt his neighbours viewing him with suspicion. For the next six months, he did

not get a job. All the contractors had come to know about the ‘incident’ and no one wanted to employ him.

One day, three of his prison friends came to meet him45. They said that they been released from prison

recently.

These men were in their early twenties and were into robbery and cheating cases. They shared their plan to

commit a robbery and asked Joseph to join in. His job was to be present at the spot and ‘keep a watch’.

Joseph was in great financial trouble; he had no job, and his savings were over. He could not go back to his

native place as his sisters were to be married off, and he needed money for their dowry. He felt scared in

joining them but his need was too strong to deter him.

45 He had given them his address before leaving prison. One of them was from Karnataka, another from Kerala and the third was a Maharashtrian. They lived in the same barrack in prison and they had given him a lot of support inside.

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His involvement in the robbery, of looting cash from a petrol pump taught him how to make ‘fast’ money.

Gradually, this became a regular activity – looting shops, offices, jewelers and banks; this phase went on

for nearly three years. He moved residences every six months, sometimes living alone and sometimes with

friends and/or co-accused. He would go home to his family once in six months with large sums of money.

He got his sisters married, refurbished their house and bought more land. His family was suspicious about

his source of income but he ‘convinced’ them that he was into business.

Joseph finally was arrested (along with eight others) in a robbery case in 2002 through an informer. They

were kept in the custody of various police stations and sixteen cases were lodged against him, of robbery

and attempt to murder. He was in prison for two years, and was released in 2004, discharged in all the

cases. After his release, he went back to crime and was now involved in bigger robberies – of hawala

racketeers, film financiers, diamond merchants, etc.

Joseph met his future wife during this phase. She was his neighbour and worked in a beauty parlour. They

fell in love and Joseph told her about his background. Initially, she was scared but he managed to bring her

around. He promised her that he would give up crime and move to another city. In 2005, they moved

together to a nearby city. Joseph bought a house, three shops and two cars with the money he had made

through crime. He started tyre-repair business in the shops and gave the cars on rental basis to a call centre.

He was now earning well through his ‘white’ businesses and soon, Joseph and his girl friend got married in

a temple.

Joseph was re-arrested in December 2005 by the police in some of his old cases. He was charged under

MCOCA in four cases relating to robbery and one relating to kidnapping. Joseph is in prison since the last

five years, facing trial in his cases.

Joseph has very strong views about the injustices in the system. While in prison, he had organised a hunger

strike by prisoners to highlight the plight of under trials in MCOCA cases and to demand for an increase in

the number of courts trying MCOCA accused persons. He succeeded in his endeavour and the High Court

increased the number of MCOCA courts as a result of the agitation. After his release, Joseph plans to settle

down with his wife, who is now living with her parents in her native place in UP.

Asif

The researcher met Asif in prison. He was from the list given by AEC to the researcher. Asif was of

medium build and height, of wheatish complexion, with a flowing beard, a distinct stutter in his speech, and

a brooding look. His interview was spread over four sessions and lasted around ten hours.

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Asif is twenty five years of age. His family is based in their native place in UP. He has been living by

himself since the last six years (of which three years have been spent in prison) and does not have much

contact with them.

Asif is from a well-to-do family. His father was a tailor master and worked in the Middle East for twenty

four years. He has five brothers and one sister. The family lived in Mumbai in a lower-middle class locality

along the western suburbs till 2001. They moved to UP for two reasons – space crunch due to increasing

family size and to separate Asif from his friend circle. Presently, his father owns a showroom in their home

town for selling footwear. They also own a cooking-gas agency. They own five rooms on the main road in

the town.

Asif’s eldest brother was also a tailor master and worked in the Middle East many years. He now works in

a network marketing company in Mumbai, and lived with his family in the western suburbs. Another elder

brother, who worked in the Middle East as an AC mechanic, also works in the same company now and

lives with his family in the central suburbs. One of his younger brothers is a trainee in the same company

and lives with his wife in a house nearby. One of his sisters is married and lives next to his parent’s house

in UP. His youngest brother lives with his parents and handles the gas agency.

Asif dropped out of school after the VIIIth standard, due to lack of interest in studies. He learnt the job of

an AC mechanic and worked for a multi-national company as an AC mechanic from 1998 to 2000. He also

knows driving; he has worked in a call centre as a driver for four months.

Asif shifted with his parents to UP in 2001, but did not like it there. He found the place ‘without any life’.

Within a month he was back in Mumbai. He lived with his aunt (mother’s sister) for six months. He joined

back his earlier employer but left the job after three months as he found the travelling (from his aunt’s

house to his work place) very tough. He was without a job for the next three months. He now started

spending more time with his friends from his earlier area of residence. They took care of all his needs.

The area where he hung out with his friends consisted of various gangs who were involved in illegal

activities such as selling charas and extortion of builders. He got associated with one of the gangs. These

gangs often had territorial fights and one such fight resulted in Asif assaulting one of the rival gang

members with a sword. A case of attempt to murder was registered against him and he became ‘wanted’

(absconding). Asif soon formed his own gang of four boys; their main business was to ‘forcefully’ recover

of loans, on behalf of a woman (from the area) who gave small loans to local people.

Asif’s life was now under threat and he decided to move back to his native place. Asif’s father helped him

to start a gas agency and he was doing well in the business, but he soon got into a fight with a local dada,

who was ‘creating trouble’ for his family. His father became upset with him and asked him to leave the

house.

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Asif moved back to Mumbai and asked for help from the woman for whom he used to work. He wanted a

loan to buy a taxi, but she did not help. He was desperate for money. He joined a UP based gang operating

in Mumbai first and later joined a known Mumbai gang. Between 2003 and 2006, he worked for this gang,

carrying out extortions, at a fixed remuneration of around Rs. 20,000/- pm. He was finally arrested in an

extortion case and charged under MCOCA by the AEC. He has been in prison since then.

Asif is very worried about his case. His gang has ditched him. He has no lawyer who can fight for his bail.

His family is not in touch with him and he too does not want to ‘trouble’ them. He feels he has no face to

ask for their help. He stares at an uncertain future.

Parvez

The researcher met Parvez in prison and a co-accused of Harish. He was of medium height, thin and

wheatish complexioned. He seemed disinterested but did not refuse to be interviewed either. His interview

lasted one session of two hours.

Parvez is twenty two years of age. He studied in a municipal school till class VIth. He lives with his family

in government staff quarters in the western suburbs of Mumbai. His father is around forty five years of age

and worked in the government as a liftman. Around fifteen years back, he fell off a bus and since that

incident, he became mentally imbalanced. He took VRS seven years back and gets a pension. His mother is

around thirty seven and is a teacher in an anganwadi nearby under the ICDS project of the government. His

elder brother is a site supervisor with a builder. His younger sister is studying in the junior college. They

have a ‘normal’ family environment at home.

Harish and Parvez are childhood friends. As they grew up, their ‘friend circle’ would hang out as a group,

drink on the road side and go home after midnight. His father would object to his behaviour, but to no avail.

Parvez was not interested in studies, so he dropped out. He got a job in 2004 in a theatre canteen, of selling

ice creams and snacks at a salary of Rs. 3500/-.

Five-six of the boys from the area including Harish and Parvez asked for a donation of Rs. 10000/- from a

local builder during the Christmas festival. He gave the money the next day out of fear. People in the area

complained to the police, leading to their arrest.

Parvez regrets accompanying Harish to the builder’s office, which has landed him in trouble with the law.

He is grateful for the support of his family after his arrest. They have arranged for a lawyer for him; his

mother comes to court to meet him on his court dates. After his release, Parvez plans to turn over a new leaf

and get back to his job. He is confident that he would be able to convince his employer to take him back. In

case he refuses, he would take his family’s help in finding a job.

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Ramesh

The researcher met Ramesh through an organisation which works on rehabilitation of released prisoners in

Mumbai. Ramesh has been their client since 1996; he was a senior member of a known gang who has now

successfully got out of crime. He lives with his wife in a small apartment in central Mumbai. Ramesh is

tall, stocky, fair complexioned and has a confident and calm look about him. The interview with him was

spread over seven sessions and lasted about eighteen hours. The interviews were held in a ground outside

the office of the organisation.

Ramesh is about forty five years of age. Ramesh grew up in a lower middle class locality in the western

suburbs of Mumbai. His father worked in a factory which produced wrist watch straps; when he was about

forty five, he had to take voluntary retirement as the factory closed down. Ramesh was barely thirteen years

old then. Being the eldest of three siblings, he took on the role of the breadwinner and started with selling

newspapers, delivery of milk packets and washing cars in the morning. Later he got a job in the canteen of

a bank as a ‘tea-boy’. The manager of the bank found him to be good at his work and transferred him to the

main branch of the bank which was in south Mumbai. Ramesh found it increasingly difficult to manage

work and school and had to finally drop out. He tried studying in a night school but could not manage it

after a point.

The area where Ramesh lived was known for its illegal activities – betting clubs, gambling and illicit liquor

dens. It was not uncommon for one brother in a family to be working in an industrial unit and another at an

illicit liquor den. There were turf wars between local gangs which organised and ran these activities often

leading to fights between boys and sometimes arrests. Ramesh got involved in one such fight because of his

younger brother’s involvement in a group fight. He was now ‘wanted’ by the police and had to move out of

the area, shifting to his grandmother’s house. This was another lower middle class area with most residents

living in chawls near central Mumbai. On account of all these problems, Ramesh had to give up his canteen

job, where he was hopeful of being made ‘permanent’ soon.

He started selling nightgowns, lungis and women’s wear in the hawkers’ market near the largest vegetable

market in the city. The hawkers in the area had to pay protection-cum- extortion money to territorial gangs

in order to do business. Ramesh became friends with one of the gang leaders who knew about his

background and soon Ramesh joined him as his lieutenant. At the behest of the leader he attacked one of

the rival gang members leading to a case being registered against him, of attempt to murder. He again

became ‘wanted’ and his leader moved him to his area to protect him from rivals and the police.

Ramesh became a senior member of the gang in no time, though his organisational and leadership qualities.

He met his future wife while living in this area; they fell in love and this was the first time that Ramesh

began planning to get out of crime. It was also during this phase of his life that he was seriously injured in

an attack by his rivals leading to his hospitalization; his identity getting revealed, led to his first arrest.

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Ramesh spent the next ten years in and out of prison and was charged with various offences ranging from

murder, attempt to murder, assault, extortion, carrying weapons and TADA. His girlfriend, whom he

married during one of his stints out of prison stood solidly by him and supported him through the ups and

downs of life.

By 1996, many of his cases were discharged and he came out on bail in the remaining ones. He had come

to know about an organisation which helped released prisoners and wrote to them asking for their support

while he was in prison. After his release, he and his wife moved to their native place in the Konkan region.

One day a police officer came looking for him in connection with an ‘enquiry’ in a case. Ramesh told him

about his plan to quit crime and something in their interaction convinced the officer of his intentions. He

brought Ramesh to Mumbai, did a ‘token’ arrest in an extortion case and helped him get released on bail

the next day. He referred Ramesh to the same organisation for his rehabilitation.

Ramesh attended the rehabilitation programme of the organisation for six months, gave daily attendance to

the local police station for more than a year, maintained a daily diary of movements for two years,

promptly went to the police station along with the social worker whenever called for an inquiry and was

bale to ‘clear’ his name from police records over a period of time. He started a vegetable vending business

in the same area where he earlier extorted money from hawkers, facing local opposition with grit and

determination. Ramesh today is a wholesale agent for leafy vegetables which he picks up from the

producers for sale in the wholesale market. He has settled his family in his native place and lives with his

wife in a small apartment in central Mumbai.

Akash

The researcher met Akash through the same organisation which has supported Ramesh’s efforts to get out

of crime. He has been their client since 2004; he was a member of the same gang as Ramesh. He lives with

his mother, brother, cousin and their wives and children in a chawl in the western suburbs of Mumbai.

Akash is short, thin, fair complexioned and has pleasing manners. The interview with him was spread over

six sessions and lasted about fifteen hours. The interviews were held in a ground outside the office of the

organisation and sometimes in the TISS campus.

Akash is about thirty five years old. He is the eldest of three siblings, a younger brother and a sister. His

father worked in a factory owned by a multi national company, which he left to start his own business, that

of driving a tempo for transporting goods. He grew up in a lower middle class Maharashtrian locality in

the western suburbs of Mumbai. He lived in a chawl with his maternal grandparents, uncles, cousins and

their families. His father owned a ‘room’ in a nearby locality and wanted to move out of this house with his

family but his mother would not. This was the bone of contention between his parents and led to many

fights between them. There would be periods when his father would move to his room only to be cajoled

back a few days later by his mother.

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Akash describes his family situation as ‘normal’ until an accident in which his father was involved (while

driving the tempo). This accident shook his father and he stopped driving and hired someone to do it. This

made the business rather unprofitable and led to a steady deterioration in their financial condition. From

being a social drinker, his father was fast turning into an alcoholic leading to violent fights between his

parents. This was a turning point in Akash’s life as he began staying away from home for long hours,

hanging out with friends, drinking and frequenting the gambling den in the area.

Akash was now in junior college. Most of his friends were now members of a local gang led by a dada who

was attached to one of the known gangs of Mumbai. Akash also got involved in a couple of fights which

ended in violence. The local dada offered Akash to join him. His job was to carry out extortion threats on

construction sites and in return there was good money and life in the fast lane – going to bars, eating out,

wearing expensive clothes and generally having ‘fun’. He was now in college, in his first year B.Com.

Within one month of joining the gang, he got involved in criminal cases including assault and murder. He

was ‘wanted’ by the police now. He moved into a room hired by the ‘company’. Soon the dada was

arrested in a murder case. More arrests took place. Akash’s family was harassed by the police to reveal his

whereabouts; he finally surrendered before the police. His first arrest took place in 1993 under section 302,

324, 326 IPC and TADA. He was in prison as an under trial from 1993 to 1996; he was released in 1997

after being discharged in the TADA and assault cases and released on bail in the murder case.

However, Akash went back to the gang and was involved in largely extortion related activities. Police was

on his trail and this cat-and-mouse game led to his surrender before the police in the year 2000. Between

2000 and 2004, Akash was in and out of prison under various charges. It was during this phase that he

received the unstinted support of his family, particularly his mother and sister, and his girlfriend. She was a

distant relative and was in love with him. She committed herself to him despite knowing his background

and his uncertain future. All these factors led Akash to decide that his time in crime was over. He and sister

approached the organisation whose social worker he had met while in prison.

Akash’s attempt to get out of crime has been a difficult one and is not yet over. His struggles have included

marrying his girlfriend and a subsequent separation from her, finding a job which suited his interest and

identity, dealing with alcoholism and family conflict (particularly with his brother and sister), countering

police suspicion and offers from the gang to rejoin them. He continues to be friends with his ex-wife. This

and his relationship with the social workers of the organisation have given him the emotional strength to

continue to struggle on the road to rehabilitation.

Nilesh

The researcher met Nilesh in one of the Unit offices of the Crime Branch. He was ‘called’ to the police

station by an officer whom the researcher had ‘approached’ to explore the possibility of ‘finding’

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respondents through him (he know the officer since the last fifteen years). Nilesh was an ex-gang member

who was now a police informer. He was tall, muscular, wheatish complexioned and smart looking. His

interview lasted one session for two hours. Efforts to get in touch with him again were unsuccessful.

Nilesh is twenty nine years of age. He belongs to a lower middle class family. His father was an electrician

in a government hospital and his family lived in the staff quarters in the hospital campus in central

Mumbai. His mother was a home maker, but would add to the family income by supplying lunch boxes to

doctors working in the hospital. Nilesh was the eldest of the siblings, with a sister who was three years

younger and a brother who was nine years younger to him. He was average in his studies and life was

‘normal’. There were no conflicts, until he became the source of tension at home.

Nilesh used to deliver the lunch boxes to the doctors everyday after school, to help his mother. One of the

doctors became very friendly with him. He had many motorbikes at his disposal and would give Nilesh the

keys to his bikes to drive around. Nilesh would drive around his area for fun and to show off to his friends.

One day (in 1999), the police raided the doctor’s house and found a revolver inside the house. Nilesh was

hanging out in the doctor’s house at the time of the raid.

Despite his protests, the police arrested Nilesh along with the doctor and another man (he was an engineer),

and charged them with a case of robbery of motorbikes. Nilesh was in his Xth standard when this incident

happened. His family was shocked and rallied around him. The family arranged a lawyer for him. He was

in prison for two years. During this period, his father passed away (he was suffering from T.B.), and his

mother got employment as a peon, on humanitarian grounds. He was finally released on bail in 2001.

People in the neighbourhood viewed him with fear and kept their distance; he now had an image of a dada.

His school friends avoided him. He had already missed his SSC exam and he was constantly reminded to

keep out of trouble at home. He decided to take up a job and reappear for his SSC exams (privately).

Through his family’s contacts, he found a job in a bank as a peon. Three months later, one day the bank

asked him to leave the job; he had come to know about his criminal background (though he had no

complaints against him). Nilesh found another job in a government hospital through his mother’s contacts,

but history repeated itself after six months.

Nilesh lost all hope of trying to live a ‘decent’ life and ‘settle down’. In 2002, he decided to leave home,

fed up with taunts about his unemployed status and the trouble his family was made to go through because

of frequent visits by the police (asking his whereabouts and what he was up to). He got in touch with a

‘friend’, one of his prison contacts and asked him for work. He got involved extortion operations and

earned handsome sums of money. Gradually, he got pulled into the gang’s activities and became a fringe

member.

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In 2005, Nilesh was arrested in a case of attempted robbery along with other co-accused. This time his

family refused to support him. His gang hired a lawyer for him. He was released in 2007 on bail in one of

the cases and was discharged in some of the cases. While in prison, he took a decision that he no longer

wanted to live this life. On the day he was getting released, he took Rs.2000/- from one of the gang

members. He took a train to one of the last suburbs of Central Railway and got down at the last stop. He

stayed in a lodge and stayed up the whole night thinking about his next step. He then remembered an

officer he had met once and about whom he had heard in prison.

The next day, he traced his telephone number and called him up. The officer asked him to meet him. Nilesh

works for this officer; he is a police informer now. He has great faith in this officer and is confident that he

will help him a job and ‘settle down’ in life. He plans to get in touch with his family after he has a steady

job and a house of his own (at least on rent). He wants to show them that he is capable of turning over a

new leaf. Otherwise, he feels it is better to die (he knows that his life is under threat) than continue this

life.

Nandu

The researcher met Nandu one of his key informants, a social worker from an organisation which works on

rehabilitation of released prisoners. Nandu lives in the same locality as this social worker and have known

each other since their childhoods. Nandu is an ex-gang member who is now out of crime and ‘settled’ in his

life. He was short, very thin, wheatish complexioned and had a shrill voice, hardly fitting the image of an

ex-gang member. His interview was spread over two sessions and lasted about six hours.

Nandu is thirty six years old and studied up to the IInd standard. His father is a retired mill worker. His

mother passed away when he was almost an infant (one and half years of age). His father re-married to look

after him and his two elder sisters. He did not share a good relation with his step-mother. According to him,

she did not show any love towards him or his sisters, especially after her ‘own’ children were born. His

childhood memories are centred on sense of rejection and discrimination in terms of food and clothing. He

also feels that his father did not try to compensate for the behaviour of his mother, and gradually, he started

staying out of the house for most part of the day, roaming with friends from his area. He lost interest in his

studies and finally dropped out after failing in his IInd standard a few times.

The area where he grew up was earlier marshy land. The land was ‘grabbed’ by slum lords, gradually

‘filled up’ to make it habitable and then sold in small ‘plots’ to the new migrants to the city – mill workers,

waste pickers and factory workers, mostly dalits from the sugar belt of Maharashtra. These local gangs

were also into illegal activities such as running betting clubs and illicit liquor dens. Some of them were also

into black-marketing of cinema tickets and many a turf war was fought over these activities. The gangs

required an army of youth who would be ready to use violence against each other in order to settle their

405

scores and prove their dominance in their marked out territories. Nandu was one such youth who fitted the

bill and was soon a part of the gang.

Nandu’s life over the next ten years seems to have been spent hanging out with the boys, getting involved

in violent attacks against rival members, patrolling the area to prevent transgression by opposite gangs and

getting arrested now and then. The periods he spent in prison were also characterised by similar patterns of

violent behaviour against each other.

The turning point in Nandu’s life was his marriage to his childhood love; she accepted him despite his

background and his uncertain future. Within a year, they had their first daughter and Nandu decided that

life in crime was over for him. He made a conscious attempt now to stay away from his gang members and

spent most of his time with his family. His parents had moved to their native village a few years after his

father lost his job due to the textile strike. His sisters had been married and his step-siblings lived in the

village with his parents. His wife and child were now his main emotional anchor.

However, his past associations caught up with him and he was re-arrested in a case of murder. This period

in prison was marked by self-reflection and the unstinting support of his wife. After his release, Nandu

decided to start a business, of giving small loans to local people at an interest. He had some money saved

from his past and he used this to start the business. However, the police continued to view him with

suspicion and would often call him to give information about gang activities or sometimes put him under

preventive detention (during festival time or when there were any ‘law and order’ problems). Nandu

approached the social worker who was his childhood friend and now was with an organisation which

worked at rehabilitation of released prisoners and ex-offenders. The social worker took him to their contact

centre but he could not adhere to their terms and conditions which included attending their rehabilitation

programme everyday for a minimum of two months.

Nandu approached the local corporator to help him deal with ‘police harassment’. The corporator spoke

with the local DCP who in turn requested the local police to keep him under watch but give him a ‘chance’.

It was around this time that his wife came up with an idea to earn money. She identified a local hospital

where the doctors needed packed meals; she started with supplying one and over a period of time the

numbers steadily increased. Nandu has given up his loan business and assists her with the delivery of the

packed meals. They now earn about Rs 10,000/- pm. His children are studying in private schools and

Nandu is happy with his life.

annexure i proforma for secondary data from aec,...

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