Is marriage between consenting adults against the will of parents a high-profile crime? Yes, if you go by the actions of the detective department’s anti-rowdy squad (ARS). Formed to tackle seasoned criminals, it now serves as “counsel” for couples at the bidding of rich parents and even mediates in real-estate deals.

The role of the ARS top brass in the Rizwanur Rahman case has brought to the fore the gulf between the squad’s grand aim and the ground reality.

Asked why the ARS was assigned to look into the Rizwanur Rahman-Priyanka Todi marriage, deputy commissioner (detective department) Ajoy Kumar said the squad was “the most active department that handles different types of cases”.

He added: “Besides, Rizwanur’s father-in-law Ashok Todi came up with serious allegations like abduction and wrongful confinement. So, we decided to engage our specialised wing.”

According to senior officers at Lalbazar, however, there was no justification for the squad’s involvement in the case.

“The ARS has nothing to do with marriages. We have a women’s grievance wing, which sometimes counsels young couples in such cases. Throughout the process, not a single woman officer was asked to interact with Priyanka,” stated a senior officer.

The ARS was formed with the detective department in 1868 to deal with high-profile abductions, extortion cases, murder attempts and organised crime across the city. It was once known for its efficiency.

“The ARS nabbed dreaded gangsters like Gudda, Gabbar, Sona and Nadeem in succession. Its decline started about four years ago, around the time of the real estate boom. Now, the officers have become extortionists themselves,” said a senior officer at Lalbazar.

He added: “Realtors pay lakhs to the ARS officers. They feel that paying the cops is more effective than paying local goons. Sometimes, they have both the ARS officers and the goons on their payroll.”

He cited an example. “A businessman approached Lalbazar after he could not recover a loan of several lakhs from another businessman. The detective offered to get back the money for a cut. The ARS now functions like the loan recovery agencies engaged by banks.”

The Rizwanur case was not the first instance of the squad acting as marriage counsellors. A couple, who identified themselves as Abhinabha Chakraborty and Sushama, recounted their recent bitter experience at the hands of the ARS.

After they married and started living in Belghoria, the girl’s father, an influential businessman, approached the squad. An ARS officer summoned Abhinabha to Lalbazar. There he was “threatened” and told that he would be arrested if he did not allow his wife to return to her parents.

“The officer couldn’t do more because I took along a lawyer, who pretended to be my brother,” said Abhinabha.