Reporter's Diary: Real men in khaki stumped by fake encounter specialist’s skill in finding target

The news of a young con artist, who posed as a sub-inspector of police to lure score of women by claiming to be an ‘encounter specialist’ was a talking point not only among reporters covering the crime beat but even among the personnel, including senior officers. The suspect stumped the officers when he informed them that the encounter specialist tag was a good bait to attract women. 

“Though I was involved in a couple of encounters, I never knew this could be such a lure,” quipped a senior officer. But now, after the arrest of Rajesh Prithvi who is alleged to have married at least six women and luring 20 more to exploit them sexually and financially, the actual men in uniform have come to realise the attraction that their job has. 

While it is known that some women have a crush on those in uniformed services, the degree of attraction can go even higher if the officer is also part of daring operations where criminal elements are killed in encounters, commented another police officer after learning about the exploits of Rajesh Prithvi. 

Though he has been running a human resources firm, Rajesh boasted to his victims that he had a rather colourful career in the police where he was involved in two encounters where he had gunned down couple of dreaded criminals. He opened the firm after taking voluntary retirement from the service, he told the women. 

After they arrested him, the police grilled him to know his modus operandi and found that the ‘encounter specialist’ did not have a gun with him ever. Curiously, however, the police team found a handcuff in his possession, disclosed a police source. 

- VP Raghu, Chennai