Policemen turn counsellors,settle marital disputes

A team of nine dedicated policemen are strategically placed in three different parts of the city to handle cases,call in the couples to try and reconcile differences between them. The Counselling Cell operates from near the Mumbai police headquarters in the Crawford Market area,an office in Santacruz and another office in Chembur.

While the south Mumbai office handles cases from the area and parts of the central suburbs,the Santacruz office handles western Mumbai cases,while the Chembur police station has been entrusted with the task of counselling couples from the eastern suburbs.

The procedure is simple. When a couple feels that all is not well and that they may be headed towards parting ways,one of the spouses approaches the SS Branch and submits an application which highlights the issues he/ she has with their spouse. A detailed session then takes place where a policeman interogates him/ her on the issue..

After finding out one side of the story,the cop ,who acts as a counsellor,calls the other spouse and requests him/ her to come to the SS Branch office. If the spouse wishes to talk to the police,allegations levelled against them are discussed and cleared. Having heard both sides of the story,the counsellor calls both parties to sort out the differences. This is followed by another session every 15 days until the cops feel the couple has managed to reach a compromise.

At the south Mumbai office,33-year-old Sarita Patil (name changed to protect identity) sits uncomfortably as assistant police sub-inspector Suresh Parab offers her tea to help her feel at ease. Sarita has been married for nine years and has an eight-year-old son.

She approached the counsellor saying she had caught her husband with another woman.

“He refuses to leave her and insists that they are just friends. I caught him in the very act and he still does not admit that he was wrong. My mother-in-law and brother-in-law are on my side,and they told me to leave him. However,I cannot leave him as my son will suffer,” she tells Parab,who looks on intently.

He calms her down and hands her a cup of tea,which she accepts. “I know what you must be going through. Do not worry. We will call him and try to get him to see your point of view and how it must be hurting you. We will do our best to ensure that you are both reconciled again,” he says. He tells her that he will call her again after first speaking to her husband,to know his side of the story.

While Sarita belongs to a middle-class household,Parab reveals that highly qualified persons,including doctors and lawyers also approach the cell for marital counselling.

“We had this case where a doctor with a leading hospital approached us saying she was harassed by her husband. Both of them are from different communities and had met through an online marriage portal. Since both of them had erratic schedules,they had fights over trivial issues. The fights kept on happening and they had almost given up on their relationship. After she approached us,we called both of them and did our best to reconcile them. They now talk to each other and have both agreed to work at home,” he reveals.

Parab states the police try their best to avoid cases of cruelty being filed under section 498 of the IPC,where counselling and a patch-up can help. “We try to help. The final decision,though,lies solely with the couple,” says Parab.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Enforcement) BG Shekhar says in most cases,they come across relate to joint family disputes and cheating spouses.

Dr Yusuf Matcheswalla,a psychiatrist associated with police hospital in Nagpada and head of the psychiatry department at Maseena Hospital,said that while the police are doing a good job in counselling couples,they should be trained.

The cops also plan to hold a function later this month where couples who have reconciled will be felicitated.