Maharashtra minister wanted Rs 100 crore/month collection, claims ousted top cop

Mumbai/New Delhi, March 20

Former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh on Saturday claimed Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh wanted police officers to collect at least Rs 100 crore from city bars and hotels every month, a charge Deshmukh denied.

The senior IPS officer, who was transferred to the low-key Home Guards this week following the arrest of police officer Sachin Waze in the case related to the bomb scare near Mukesh Ambani’s house Antilia, said he was made a scapegoat.

Responding to the “letter scare” which came days after the Antilia security scare, Deshmukh, NCP leader from Vidarbha region, said Singh was hurling false accusations “to save his skin” in the Waze case.

In an eight-page letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Singh alleged that Deshmukh used to call police officers to his official residence and give them a “collection target” from bars, restaurants and other establishments.

Singh claimed that Waze, who headed Mumbai police Crime Intelligence Unit, was called by Deshmukh many times in the last few months and repeatedly instructed to assist in collection of the funds. The IPS officer claimed that the minister told Waze that he had set a target of collecting Rs 100 crore a month. — PTI/TNS