'Police and professionalism: It is the leadership that has failed the Mumbai Police'

The views and opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts, analysis, assumptions and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of Republic TV/ Republic World/ ARG Outlier Media Pvt. Ltd.

A Police force is expected to be highly disciplined, motivated, and committed totally to the rule of law, so as to secure the public and the nation. It is for this reason that the Police leadership has a significant role to play in shaping its cadres and making a police force an instrument of public service, with total commitment to upholding the Constitution, on one hand, and zero tolerance to unethical practices and corruption. The recent incidents in Mumbai have brought shame and disgrace to one of the finest forces, not only in the country but to a force, that is recognized the world over for its proverbial competence and commitment to crime control and exemplary maintenance of law and order.

This decline in standards and the horrible fault lines were discernible when the self-styled “Super Cops”, branded as “encounter specialists” got an undeserved  special status in the force, bypassing hierarchy and merit In the guise of delivering immediate results, more often through questionable short cuts, these offices got a free run

In the case of API Sachin Vaze, it is alleged that despite being named and being accused of the most horrific crimes, he managed to get plum postings because of the patronage of the top leadership and the political bosses. Little did the Police leadership realize that once the genie is out of the bottle, it will be impossible to put it back. Sachin Vaze was accused of the custodial death of Khwaja Yunus, in the year 2004, was placed under suspension. While still in a state suspension, he joined the Shivsena and rose to become the party spokesman. The service rules were circumvented in his case. Under the pretext, that due to the acute shortage of force, because of the Corona Pandemic, he was re-inducted into the department, against all norms, assigned the most sensitive investigations, and since he enjoyed the support and the blessings of his superiors, he brazenly indulged in activities that were to bring disgrace and dishonor to the proud name of the Mumbai Police.

In an unprecedented criminal act, Sachin Vaze is said to have planted twenty gelatin sticks outside Antilla, the iconic residence of Mukesh Ambani. Subsequent investigations indicate his complicity and possibly of others in this extremely sinister criminal act. There are multiple dimensions in this conspiracy- the death of Mansukh Hiren is closely intertwined with this grisly saga. It is a matter of tremendous satisfaction that investigation of this ghastly murder has now been taken over by the NIA.

Subsequent investigations led to the recovery of flashy cars which included two high-end Mercedes cars, one Toyota Prado and the search goes on! Rupees five lakhs in unaccounted cash and currency counting machine were also recovered from one of these cars.

As of now, the rot appears to be cancerous and much deeper than one would have expected earlier. It is believed in the uniformed forces, that there are no bad soldiers, there are only bad Generals- it is the leadership that has failed the Mumbai Police. Branding the so-called encounter specialist as heroes and making them larger than life, giving them plum assignments- converted them into freebooters and mercenaries. For them there was no rule book, no law, as is evident from their conduct, both personal and official.

It is expected that the political leadership will ensure and enforce the long-awaited Police reforms, as mandated by the Honorable Supreme Court, in the Prakash Singh versus Union of India case of 2006. The Police leadership will have to go by the time-tested norms of discipline, commitment to the rule of law, and living with integrity and honor. They need to launch a ruthless drive against the corrupt elements in the force and ensure their immediate exit through summary departmental proceedings leading to dismissals.

It is hoped that this task is accorded the topmost priority. Ignoring this will only aggravate matters and further erode the remaining vestiges of the credibility of the administration.

The author of this article, Dr. Vikram Singh, is the former DGP of Uttar Pradesh. The views and opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts, analysis, assumptions, and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of Republic TV/ Republic World/ ARG Outlier Media Pvt. Ltd.