Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh on Thursday said Param Bir Singh was replaced as Mumbai Police Commissioner due to some “unpardonable mistakes” and “grave errors” that he made while handling the Mukesh Ambani security scare case. He added that the decision to transfer Singh was taken by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to ensure a “free and fair” probe in the cases of arrested Mumbai Police official Sachin Vaze and the explosive-laden SUV.
“He (Param Bir Singh) was transferred due to some unpardonable mistakes and grave errors. It was not a routine transfer,” said Deshmukh. However, Shiv Sena had earlier called it a “routine transfer”.
In his first reaction on the transfer matter, Deshmukh, in an interview to a Marathi channel, said, “In the investigation, certain aspects came out that could not be accepted. That is why the Chief Minister and I decided that the probe should be fair and there should not be any obstruction of justice. Singh was removed as Mumbai Police chief to ensure that there is a thorough probe, free and fair… Two reputed agencies, the NIA and ATS are investigating, both are conducting the probes professionally.”
He asserted Singh’s transfer was not just an administrative decision.
Singh was replaced by Hemant Nagrale on Wednesday, nearly a year after he took charge of the office in Mumbai.
Singh was shunted out following the row over Mumbai police officer Sachin Waze’s alleged involvement in placing an explosives-laden vehicle near an industrialist’s residence in the city. Waze was on Sunday remanded to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) custody till March 25.
Waze, who was arrested by the NIA on March 13, was attached to the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) of Mumbai police’s crime branch till recently. Its is located in the police commissioner’s office compound in south Mumbai.
The NIA on Tuesday said its team recovered some “incriminating” documents and electronic evidence such as laptop, iPad and mobile phones from Waze’s office there. A black Mercedes car, which was being used by Waze, was also seized from a parking lot near the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), and Rs 5 lakh in cash, a note-counting machine, two number plates and some clothes were recovered from it, NIA’s Inspector General Anil Shukla said.
(with inputs from agencies)
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