Taking a cue from the format of the reality-television show, 'Satyamev Jayate', of Bollywood film star Aamir Khan, the men in uniform on Sunday tried to unite 80 separated couples in an open chat and reconciliation. Police Public School turned the place where some people rediscovered love and walk home smiling.
In a first effort of its kind in the state, the 80 couples, whose cases are in the district women's cell, were invited to "Khulla Darbar" (open house), where senior superintendent of police Sukhchain Singh Gill moderated the discussion.
It was a serious approach to understand and solve family troubles. Eight teams took up 80 of the 135 pending cases, and each had an SP and a DSP on it, along with station house officers, lawyers, women counsellors and representatives of non-government organisations (NGOs). In some cases, the arguments went on for an hour.
The counsellors concluded that mothers-in-law were no more the rift makers. The dubious honour has passed to drug addiction and cell phones. "Loyalty checks are common when the partner's line goes busy," said Dhanwant Kaur, a counsellor on one of the panels. Drug abuse also leads to separation."
SSP Gill, the man who played Aamir, made no reference to Mr Perfectionist of Hindi cinema, but hailed member of parliament Harsimrat Kaur Badal as the inspiration behind the police initiative.
"Mass counselling of couples is a new thing for the police," he said. "We had done our homework on all 80 couples before inviting them to the session. We expected to reunite 25% of the couples but we surpassed our expectations and helped 38."
SSP Gill, the man who played Aamir, made no reference to Mr Perfectionist of Hindi cinema, but hailed member of parliament Harsimrat Kaur Badal as the inspiration behind the police initiative.
"Mass counselling of couples is a new thing for the police," he said. "We had done our homework on all 80 couples before inviting them to the session. We expected to reunite 25% of the couples but we surpassed our expectations and helped 38."