PICKING THE POCKETS – An artistic crime

In Delhi Police nabbed a gang of pick pockets who were running the outfit in corporate style.

There is something about picking the pockets which makes the crime / occupation different from other crimes. Nimble handed is one trait in them which we in our hearts admire. Not that we exonerate them for their anti social deeds. Yet their trade / crime is quite different from all other crimes, be it violent ones or sophisticated ones. The pick pockets have to be quite alert while doing their job. They have to have some rudimentary knowledge of psychology of human beings to enable them to assess whether their prospective victim is an easy pray or an alert one who will catch them red handed.. They have to carefully choose the victims, who have to be somewhat absent minded . They have to do their job quite often when people are milling around them. They also run the risk of getting lynched by the mob if they are caught in action. Their whole demeanor should be one in the crowd and not attracting attention of others. So also their dress, i.e., ordinary. Sounds like an eulogy. But then you try picking the pocket of somebody close to you after informing a few before hand that you are going to experiment, lest you face music in case caught by the one whose purse you are lifting. It is damn difficult to do without the person not being aware of. Crimes which are within the ambit of physical violence are crude. And the risk element of theft is much less than picking the pocket. Picking the pocket is an art. But since it violates law and falls within the realm of crime, if caught they will be punished. That is as it should be. Yet, that aspect does not diminish their getting a soft corner of our hearts.
P.S. Human beings generally look with less disfavour at persons committing white crimes compared to other criminal deeds, such as theft, violence, etc., Hence there is nothing unusual when we are not hard on pick pockets. It is an artistic con game.