Param Bir Singh suspended for ‘dereliction of duty’

The Maharashtra government on Thursday suspended former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh from service for alleged dereliction of duty and initiated disciplinary proceedings against the officer facing charges of extortion and corruption.

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An order issued by the state home department said the 1988-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer was suspended under section 3 and 4 of the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules 1969. While section 3 refers to suspension, section 4 pertains to subsistence, an allowance during the suspension period.

The order, signed by deputy secretary Venkatesh Bhat, mentioned four criminal cases against the former top cop on charges of corruption, extortion, violation of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act at police stations in Marine Lines, Kalyan and Thane.

Singh was appointed as director general of home guards on March 18 after his removal as Mumbai Police commissioner on March 17 in the aftermath of explosives being found outside industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s residence, Antilia.

He was absconding for more than six months before appearing before the police and a judicial commission November 25 and November 29 respectively.

Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, who was in hospital after surgery on November 12 and discharged on Thursday, cleared the proposal for the suspension on Wednesday.

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“Besides the criminal cases registered under various sections of Indian Penal Code, Param Bir Singh has also been found guilty of dereliction of duty in the Antilia explosives scare case. He remained absent from his duty without informing the state government and producing medical certificates. He did not even inform us after coming back last week. This has been a violation of the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules 1969,” a senior official in the home department said, seeking anonymity.

Days after his removal as the top cop, the officer had written a letter to Thackeray, alleging that then home minister Anil Deshmukh had directed crime branch officials to collect ₹100 crore every month from businessmen in Mumbai. Deshmukh, who resigned later, has denied the charge.

The inquiry commission looking into these allegations directed Singh to record his statement, but the IPS officer, who was virtually incommunicado since May, turned up only last week after the Supreme Court granted him relief from arrest.

According to the home department official cited above, as the state does not have the power to dismiss any IPS officer, it will submit a detailed report to the central government along with an inquiry report for further action.

“We will send a detailed report on the charges faced by him and the outcome of the investigation. The decision whether to recommend his dismissal will be taken at an appropriate time,” the official added.

The order also said that during the suspension period, Singh should not leave his headquarter, the office of DG Home Guard, without permission of the state director general of police.

Besides Singh, deputy commissioner of police Parag Manere was also suspended under similar charges. During the period of Manere’s suspension his headquarter will be Nagpur SP office and he will not be able to leave it sans permission. Singh was found guilty in a departmental inquiry by additional chief secretary Debashish Chakrabarty for dereliction of duty.