My only expectations from the police were and still remain, politeness, respect for my loss and a seeming effort to set right the wrong for which I am seeking redressal. When I went in, the recovery of my stolen goods was not the uppermost thing in my mind as I realize that the police have numerous more important things to worry about. All I wanted was to get through the process without friction, without being asked too many inane questions and made to feel that I am being done a favor – file the FIR, take a copy of it and leave.

I was in and out in 40 minutes flat, and for people who have tried to file a FIR, they would know that is FAST. The policemen were very courteous, they understood when I said that I missed my camera which was in the suitcase, and they accorded me the basic respect that any fellow human deserves. I ended up talking with them about where they live, their kids, their schedules, the organization of the police station.

An enlightening discovery for me was that beyond the apparent lack of organisation in the police, there is an amazing amount of organisation and cohesion. There are designated officers for special tasks like court duty, warrant duty, investigation and detection, and then there are folks who do the routine patrolling. And the responsibilities and jurisdiction of the police officers are a lot. Local trains, long distance trains, misdemeanours of any kind on trains and railway stations, post-event work like investigation, and routine work like making reports, writing complaints – if someone has ever gone to a terminus station like Mumbai Central then they would know doing all of the above is a huge logistical achievement.

While I was sitting there, the dog squad came in, with their Labrador sniffer dog. They were going in for a routine check of all the long-distance trains departing from Mumbai Central in the next 2 hours. A group of 5-6 people with one dog. How much could they realistically examine and keep the trains and station safe for travellers? These folks are doing everything that is humanly possible for them but they surely need help from the government and the citizenry.

This police station is a very small one. The officers told me that there have been plans to demolish this new one and make a more modern, state of the art police station for some time now. But they are unable to demolish this building. It is an old British-era building made of granite, and very ‘tagda’, as I was told. So, the new station is yet to happen. Maybe part-urban legend but a nice story.

I finished my complaint, thanked the officers and was walking out when one of them called out to me, happiness writ on his face, and said to me ‘Achcha laga aapse baat karke’. I felt the same, and said so. His happiness made me think that nothing pleases a Bombay policeman more than being able to help someone, even with mundane things, which is when all the idealism of his youth, the one which had made him a policeman, shines through.