The Detective Diaries presents the most sensational post-Independence cases of Kolkata Police, the oldest police commissionerate in Asia. Writer Supratim Sarkar, a serving additional commissioner of Kolkata Police, captures the different aspects of criminal investigation in a style that is rare among India’s true-crime writers. Starting from 1948 and coming right down to 2010, every case is a trendsetter, either owing to the nature of the crime, or the manner in which it was solved. From cold-blooded, psychopathic murderers to those who killed purely for money, from crimes of passion to conmen who made masterful use of technology, the selection is as varied as it is fascinating. No matter what the context, each crime made headlines. The man who mercilessly killed his pregnant wife, or the killer who wiped out his entire family, are as easily identifiable as the man who decided that big ticket robberies is the path to happiness. The highlight of the book is a case that caught the attention of the nation—the stoneman murders of 1989, a series of killings that terrorized Kolkata for months, and gave rise to an entire pantheon of urban legends. For the first time, this book presents the police version of this unsolved case. A glimpse into Kolkata's dark underbelly, guided by an author whose job takes him there every day, this book will shock and amaze in equal measure.
About the Author
Born in Calcutta in 1971, Suprati m Sarkar was a gifted student and has been a keen reader. An alumnus of St Lawrence High School, he graduated with a first class in economics from Presidency College, Calcutta. After a brief stint in journalism, he joined the Indian Police Service in 1997. Currently posted as additional commissioner of police, Kolkata, Supratim was awarded the Indian Police Medal by the president of India, as well as a special honour by the chief minister of West Bengal. He describes himself as an IPS officer by profession and a cricket lover by inclination. He is the bestselling author of Murder in the City and India Cried That Night. Yajnaseni Chakraborty has been a journalist for well over a decade and is currently senior editor at Indian Express Bangla. Born in Guwahati and brought up in Shillong, she is an alumna of Loreto House, Presidency College and Jadavpur University, and lists reading, travelling, watching films, following sports and listening to music among her interests. She translated the book India Cried That Night.
