In yet another action against controversial IPS officer Param Bir Singh, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed against him in connection with the case registered against him and others in an extortion case in the Marine Drive police station.
Singh, a 1988-batch IPS officer has served as Commissioner of Police in Mumbai and Thane and is now posted as Commandant General of Home Guards.
Singh’s allegations of corruption against the then Home Minister and senior NCP leader Anil Deshmukh had put the Maha Vikas Aghadi government into a major embarrassment.
The SIT has been formed by Mumbai Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale, who is incidentally his successor and a Director General of Police-level officer. In fact, after Singh was shunted out Nagrale, who was then the acting Director General of Police of the state was sent as Mumbai Police chief.
The seven-member SIT would directly report to Nagrale.
The SIT would be headed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Nimit Goyal, who is posted in the local arms department, the official said.
Goyal will be the supervising officer and Assistant Commissioner of Police )Deonar Division), M.S. Mujawar will be the investigating officer in the case, the official said.
The other members of the SIT are Economic Offences Wing (EOW) inspector Prinam Parab; Anti-Extortion Cell (AEC) inspector Sachin Puranik; Azad Maidan police station inspector Vinay Ghorpade, Crime Branch’s Assistant Police Inspector Mahendra Patil; and cyber police station Assistant Police Inspector Vishal Gaikwad.
Nagrale in his order instructed ACP Mujawar to take possession of all documents related to the cases from the Marine Drive police station and ACP crime (D-West), he said.
The Marine Drive police last week registered an FIR against Singh, five other police officers and two other persons on charges of extortion, cheating and forgery, following a complaint filed by a builder.
Besides Singh, others named in the complaint are Deputy Commissioner of Police Akbar Pathan, Assistant Commissioner of Police Shrikant Shinde, Assistant Commissioner of Police Sanjay Patil, Police Inspector Asha Korke, Police Inspector Nandkumar Gopale.
Two of the builder's partners, Sunil Jain and Sanjay Punamia, have been arrested in the case, he said.
According to the complaint, Jain and Punamia had conspired with police officials and demanded Rs 15 crore from the builder to withdraw some cases against him, he said.
The FIR was registered in the Marine Drive police station under India Penal Code sections 387, 387, 389 for extortion, section 403 for dishonest misappropriation of converts to his own use, 409 for criminal breach of trust by a public servant, 420 for cheating, 423 for fraudulent execution of deed of transfer.