Tag: Param Bir Singh

  • SC transfers investigation of all cases filed against Param Bir Singh to CBI

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme court on Thursday transferred all the pending cases against former Mumbai Commissioner Param Bir Singh to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The bench however refused to revoke his suspension.

    “This is not a reflection on the police of Maharashtra, which is respected, but a troubling scenario among the higher echelons…We are of the prime facie view that there is some concerted effort which needs the investigation by CBI. What is the truth, who is at fault, how does such a scenario come to prevail is something which investigation must get into. CBI must hold an impartial enquiry into all these aspects.” the court said..

    Such transfer is required to be done within a week, the court added.

    The Court has passed the order on the petition filed by suspended Senior IPS officer Param Bir Singh against a September 2020 judgement of the Maharashtra High court which had dismissed the petition filed by him challenging two preliminary inquiries started against Singh by the state government.

    He had also sought transfer of the probe regarding the same to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The top court had earlier directed the Maharashtra government to completely hold back the ongoing investigation against the former cop over the allegations of misconduct and corruption.

    (With inputs from agencies)

  • Businessman accuses Param Bir Singh, MSRDC MD of extortion, seeks police probe

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: A businessman has filed a complaint of extortion against former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, MD of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) Radheshyam Mopalwar and others.

    An application for FIR was submitted by the complainant’s lawyer Ali Kaashif Khan Deshmukh to senior police inspector of Santacruz police station but no FIR has been registered yet, an official said.

    Anil Vedmheta, the complaint, sought the registration of FIR against Singh, Mopalwar as well as former `encounter specialist’ police officer Pradeep Sharma.

    Vedmheta was falsely named in an extortion and Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) case registered at Kalwa police station, the application said.

    The accused then took away his business stock worth Rs 5 crore on promise of withdrawing the fake MCOCA case, it alleged.

    Param Bir Singh is facing at least five extortion cases in Mumbai and Thane.

    In March last year he had accused then home minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption.

    In December 2021 Singh was suspended from service.

  • Centre has initiated disciplinary proceedings against Param Bir Singh: Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The Centre has initiated disciplinary proceedings against suspended IPS officer Param Bir Singh, Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil said in the state Assembly on Wednesday.

    Singh was placed under suspension earlier this month after he was named as an accused in multiple cases of extortion in Mumbai and Thane.

    The former Mumbai police commissioner had earlier accused then state home minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption.

    On Wednesday, Walse Patil submitted a written reply in the Lower House in response to a question asked by Abu Asim Azmi (of the Samajwadi Party), during the Question Hour on the first day of the state legislature’s winter session.

    “The Centre has initiated proceedings for disciplinary action under the All India Service Rules against Param Bir Singh,” the minister said.

    He said the state home department has got recommendation for the suspension of 28 police officials.

    The home department has got information of serious offences involving 30 police officials, including Param Bir Singh, he said.

    The state Director General of Police (DGP) has given a proposal for their suspension to ensure free and fair probe into the charges against them, Walse Patil said.

    The home department has sought more details into the charges against them.

    These officials include five deputy commissioners of police (DCPs) and five assistant commissioners of police (ACPs), he said.

    So far, Param Bir Singh and Parag Manere (who served as the DCP) have been suspended, the minister informed.

    Meanwhile, during discussions over a question on illegal sand trafficking, Maharashtra Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat told the House that the state government will “fix the offset price for auction at Rs 600”.

    There is also a plan to reduce the time period to take a decision on the auction, and also consider invoking provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) after discussing the same with the law and judiciary department, he said.

    So far, penalty amounting to Rs 1.21 crore has been recovered for illegal sand trafficking, he added.

  • Param Bir Singh not whistleblower, flagged corruption after transfer: Maharashtra to Supreme Court

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh cannot be considered as a “whistleblower” under the law as he chose to speak out against alleged corruption involving former home minister Anil Deshmukh only after his transfer, the Maharashtra government has told the Supreme Court seeking dismissal of his plea.

    A bench headed by Justice S K Kaul had granted a major relief to Singh on November 22 by directing the Maharashtra Police not to arrest him in criminal cases lodged against him and had wondered if he was being hounded for filing cases against police officers and extortionists, “what could happen to a common man”.

    Seeking dismissal of Singh’s plea for a CBI probe into the entire matter and against any coercive action by the state, the Maharashtra government has filed a reply affidavit in the apex court and said that the ongoing probe in criminal cases against the former top cop not be interfered with.

    ​ALSO READ | Enforcement Directorate records statement of suspended Mumbai top cop Param Bir Singh

    In the affidavit, Joint Secretary of Maharashtra Home Department Venkatesh Madhav said, “Petitioner (Singh) cannot be considered a whistleblower. I state and submit that, contrary to what is stated in the SLP (special leave petition), I deny that petitioner is a whistleblower as contemplated under the Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2014 or that the ratio laid down in the case of….applies to the facts of the present case.” 

    “As evident from the petitioners own letter dated March 20, 2021, the petitioner cites instances of alleged corruption that took place few months prior to March, but only sought to expose these allegations on March 20, that is three days after he was transferred. Thus it is denied that the petitioner’s letter dated March 20 was issued in public interest or for a bonafide purpose and therefore it is denied that the petitioner is a whistleblower.”

    In the 83-page reply, the state government said Singh who was recently suspended from the Mumbai Police over allegations of misconduct is indirectly trying to seek a stay on the criminal investigations pending against him through the petition and has failed to disclose material and relevant facts.

    “At the outset, I say that this court in a catena of judgements….has observed that it must be left to the discretion of the investigating agency to decide the course of investigation and that a court should interfere with an investigation only in rare cases.

    “The Petitioner has filed the SLP against the impugned judgement dated September 16, 2021, passed by the Bombay High Court , but is really seeking a stay of further proceedings into various criminal complaints registered against him and this, with great respect, ought not to be permitted by this court,” the state government said.

    The state government said that various enquiries against the suspended police officer are pending and being conducted.

    “The following instances of negligence in performance of service by the petitioner were to be enquired into….Whether the petitioner failed to control and supervise his subordinate Mr Sachin Waze (who was appointed as the head of the Crime Investigation Unit despite the opposition of the Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime), against whom a case has been registered by the NIA in view of his involvement in parking an explosive-laden car near the Antilia building , Mumbai, which was found on February 25, 2021,” it said.

    The affidavit said that the state government has accorded approval to initiate the disciplinary proceedings against him under the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules , 1969.

    “The statement of articles of charges framed against him along with the statement of imputations of misconduct or misbehaviour and a list of documents….are issued,” it said.

    The affidavit stated Singh should approach the Central Administrative Tribunal to challenge the departmental enquiry and his plea was rightly dismissed by the Bombay High Court on the grounds of non-maintainability and availability of alternate remedies.

    “The validity of the order dated April 1 and April 20 including the alleged malafides in issuance of the said order clearly fall within the ambit of ‘service matters’, which can be agitated before and adjudicated by the CAT…..,” it said.

    It said the plea of Singh has become infructuous as the CBI has already issued summons to Sanjay Pande, a police officer, on September 18 and it is evident that the CBI is investigating the conversations that took place between Param Bir Singh and Sanjay Pande.

    The apex court has fixed the plea of Singh for hearing on December 6.

    The matter involving Singh and former state home minister Anil Deshmukh, facing probe over corruption allegations levelled by Singh, has become “curiouser and curiouser”, the top court had said, issuing notices to the Maharashtra government, its DGP Sanjay Pande and the CBI on the plea of the former top cop of Mumbai.

    Singh’s lawyer had said Singh needed protection as he had shown the courage to come to this court and raise the issue of corruption against the former state home minister.

    The lawyer had said as many as six FIRs have been lodged against Singh for the alleged offences pertaining to years like 2015 and 2016 and submitted as to how a police officer will act if they are hounded at the behest of state for the actions done as police officers on the complaints of bookies and extortionists.

    The Bombay High Court had dismissed Singh’s petition seeking to quash inquiries initiated against him by the Maharashtra government, and said he can approach the Central Administrative Tribunal.

    After he was shunted out as Mumbai Police commissioner in March 2021 in the aftermath of the Antilia bomb scare case, Singh, in a letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, levelled corruption allegations against Deshmukh.

    In his petition, Singh had also alleged that DGP Pande told him that the inquiries were the fall-out of his allegations against Deshmukh, an NCP leader.

  • SC protects ex-Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh from arrest in criminal cases lodged against him in Maharashtra

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Monday granted protection from arrest to former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh in criminal cases lodged against him in Maharashtra and sought responses from the state government, its DGP and the CBI on his plea.

    Singh, who had accused the then Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption, has alleged frame up in criminal cases.

    Besides seeking protection from coercive steps, Singh has sought CBI probe into the entire issue involving him.

    A bench comprising Justices S K Kaul and M M Sundresh issued notices to the Maharashtra government, its DGP Sanjay Pande and the CBI on Singh’s plea.

    “Issue notice. Returnable on December 6. In the meantime, the petitioner shall join the investigation and shall not be arrested,” the bench ordered.

  • No protection, no hearing until we know where you are, says SC on IPS officer Param Bir Singh’s plea

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Thursday asked former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh to disclose his location and said, “no protection, no hearing until we know where you are”.

    The apex court asked his lawyer to inform about Singh’s whereabouts and posted the matter for hearing on November 22.

    A bench headed by Justice S K Kaul took exception that his plea seeking protection has been filed through power of attorney.

    “You are seeking protective orders; nobody knows where you are. Suppose you are sitting abroad and taking legal recourse through power of attorney then what happens. If that is so then you will come to India if the court rules in your favour, we don’t know what you have in mind. No protection, no hearing until we know where you are,” said the bench also comprising Justice M M Sundresh.

    It further said: “The petition has been filed through power of attorney. Where are you. Are you in this country or outside? In some state, where are you. We will come to the remaining, first we know where are you?” A magistrate’s court in Bombay on Wednesday declared Singh a “proclaimed offender” in an extortion case registered against him and some other police officers in the city.

    Singh had last attended his office in May this year after which he went on leave.

    The state police had told the Bombay High Court last month that his whereabouts were not known.

  • Ex-Mumbai top cop Param Bir Singh declared proclaimed offender in extortion case

    By Online Desk

    In a setback for controversial former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh, a Mumbai court on Wednesday declared him a “proclaimed offender” in an extortion case registered against him and others.

    The court ordered that the next step would be seizing his assets if the cop refuses to turn up does in 30 days. 

    The court accepted the Proclamation application filed by the state’s Crime Investigation Department (CID) which sought to declare Singh as an “absconder”. The CID move came as Singh remained untraceable despite the issuance of non-bailable warrants, and this move will help the probe agency in finding him.

    The case is based on the complaint of a man who claimed the accused, between January last year and March 2021 extorted Rs 9 lakh for not conducting a raid on two bars and restaurants that he operates in partnership with and had also forced him to buy two smartphones worth around Rs 2.92 lakh for them.

    The six accused have been charged under Indian Penal Code sections 384 and 385 (both pertaining to extortion) and 34 (common intention).

    The state government has also initiated the process to suspend Singh and another police officer after they were named as accused in extortion cases, an official said on Saturday.

    ALSO READ | Sachin Waze extorted money from cricket bookies on Param Bir’s instructions: Police to court

    The process began after a proposal was sent by the Director-General of Police (DGP) to the state home department a few days ago, he said.

    Under section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, a court can publish a proclamation requiring an accused to appear if a warrant issued against him or her cannot be executed. As per section 83, after issuing such a proclamation the court can also order attachment of the proclaimed offender’s properties.

    Former assistant police inspector Sachin Waze is also an accused in the case, registered at Goregaon police station in the city.

    Besides Param Bir Singh, co-accused Vinay Singh and Riyaz Bhatti were also declared as proclaimed offender by additional chief metropolitan magistrate S B Bhajipale.

    Bimal Agrawal, a real estate developer and hotelier, had alleged that the accused extorted Rs 9 lakh from him for not conducting raid on two bars and restaurants which he ran in partnership, and also forced him to buy two smartphones worth around Rs 2.92 lakh for them.

    The incidents occurred between January 2020 and March 2021, he had claimed.

    Following his complaint, a case was filed under Indian Penal Code sections 384 and 385 (both pertaining to extortion) and 34 (common intention) against six accused.

    Singh is facing an extortion case in Thane too.

    He was shunted out from the post of Mumbai police commissioner in March 2021 after Waze was arrested in the case of the SUV with explosives found near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s south Mumbai residence and the death of Thane businessman Mansukh Hiran.

    Singh, subsequently, accused then Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption, a charge the latter denied.

  • Absconding accused proclamation order process begins against Param Bir Singh

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The Mumbai Crime Branch has begun the process of getting former police commissioner Param Bir Singh proclaimed as an absconding accused in an extortion case registered against him and others in a police station in suburban Goregaon, an official said on Saturday.

    The step is being taken as Singh has remained untraceable despite the issuance of non-bailable warrants, and this move will help the probe agency in finding him, a government lawyer said.

    The Crime Branch is also seeking such an order against two other accused in the case, Vijay Singh and Riyaz Bhati, he said.

    The case is based on the complaint of a man who claimed the accused, between January last year and March, 2021 extorted Rs 9 lakh for not conducting a raid on two bars and restaurants that he operates in partnership, and had also forced him to buy two smartphones worth around Rs 2.92 lakh for them.

    The six accused have been charged under Indian Penal Code sections 384 and 385 (both pertaining to extortion) and 34 (common intention).

    The state government has also initiated the process to suspend Singh and another police officer after they were named as accused in extortion cases, an official said on Saturday.

    The process began after a proposal was sent by the Director General of Police (DGP) to the state home department a few days ago, he said.

    In September, DGP Sanjay Pandey had sent a proposal to suspend Singh and other police officials named in alleged extortion cases, but the home department sought specific information about the role of each accused officer.

    The DGP’s office sent a fresh proposal this week, the home department official said.

    The department is considering the suspension of Param Bir Singh and a Deputy Commissioner of Police-rank officer who is named in these cases, but not others, he added.

    On Wednesday, a magistrate’s court issued a non-bailable warrant (NBW) against Singh in an extortion case registered at Marine Drive police station here by real estate developer Shyamsunder Agrawal.

    It was the third NBW issued against Singh.

    Earlier courts had issued warrants in cases of extortion registered at Goregaon in Mumbai and in neighbouring Thane against him.

    The IPS officer was shunted out from the post of Mumbai police commissioner in March this year after assistant police inspector Sachin Waze (now dismissed) was arrested in the case of the SUV with explosives found near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s south Mumbai house, and subsequent death of businessman Mansukh Hiran.

    Singh subsequently accused then state home minister Anil Deshmukh of asking police officials to collect Rs 100 crore a month from bars and restaurants in Mumbai.

    Deshmukh, who denied the allegation, stepped down as minister and is facing CBI probe.

  • Param Bir Singh extortion case: Two cops remanded in Maharashtra CID custody for seven days

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: A Mumbai court on Tuesday remanded two police officers in the custody of the Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department (CID) custody for seven days in connection with an extortion case registered at Marine Drive police station here against them and former city police commissioner Param Bir Singh.

    The two cops – inspectors Nandkumar Gopale and Asha Korke – who were previously posted in the Mumbai crime branch, were arrested by the CID on Monday. Gopale was currently posted at the Khandala police training centre, and Korke in the Naigaon local arms unit.

    The duo was arrested following a complaint filed by real estate developer Shyamsunder Agrawal at the Marine Drive police station on July 22 this year on the charge of extortion. On Tuesday, the two accused were produced before additional chief metropolitan magistrate RM Nerlikar.

    The court remanded them in the CID’s custody for further probe into the case. The FIR names Param Bir Singh and seven others, including five police officers. Besides Korke and Gopale, the other police officers named in the FIR are DCP (Detection-I) Akbar Pathan, ACP Shrikant Shinde and ACP Sanjay Patil.

    During the investigation into the case, police had arrested Agarwal’s former business partner Sanjay Punamia and his associate Sunil Jain.

    The CID was also entrusted with the investigation of a case registered against Shyamsunder Agrawal under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) at Juhu police station for his alleged links with underworld gangster Chhota Shakeel.

    Agrawal had alleged that based on this “false” case, Param Bir Singh and other police officers extorted money from him at the behest of his former business partner Sanjay Punamiya, as per the FIR.

  • Param Bir Singh extortion case: CID arrests two police officers

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Monday arrested two police officers, previously posted in the Mumbai crime branch, in connection with the extortion case registered against them and former city police commissioner Param Bir Singh at the Marine Drive police station, an official said.

    The two officers are identified as police inspector Nandkumar Gopale, currently posted at the Khandala police training centre, and police inspector Asha Korke, posted in the Naigaon local arms unit.

    Their arrests come concerning a complaint filed by real estate developer Shyamsunder Agrawal at the Marine Drive police station on July 22 on the charge of extortion.

    The FIR names Param Bir Singh and seven others, including five police officers.

    During the investigation, police had arrested Agarwal’s former business partner Sanjay Punamia and his associate Sunil Jain.

    The five cops named in the FIR are identified as DCP (crime branch) Akbar Pathan, Assistant Commissioner of Police Shrikant Shinde, ACP Sanjay Patil, Inspector Asha Korke and crime branch inspector Nandkumar Gopale.

    Considering the scope of the investigation into the extortion case filed at the Marine Drive police station, its probe was transferred from the SIT to the state CID earlier, the official said.

    The CID was also entrusted with the investigation of a case registered against Shyamsunder Agrawal under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) at Juhu police station for his alleged links with Underworld gangster Chhota Shakeel.

    Agrawal had alleged that based on this “false” case, Param Bir Singh and other police officers extorted money from him at the behest of his former business partner Sanjay Punamiya, as per the FIR.