Bombay HC to pronounce order on PIL filed by Param Bir Singh today – Hindustan Times

The Bombay high court is scheduled to pronounce its order on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, seeking a Central Bureau of Information (CBI) probe in his allegations of corruption against home minister Anil Deshmukh.

A bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice Girish Kulkarni is expected to pronounce the order at 11am.

The PIL called for the report of Commissioner of Intelligence Rashmi Shukla and all connected files to be placed before the high court. Meanwhile, an advocate Ghanshyam Upadhyay also filed a PIL seeking a court-monitored probe by the CBI or ED into the various alleged malpractices by police officers including Singh and suspended API Sachin Vaze, and home minister Deshmukh. The petition will come up for hearing in due course.

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The PIL filed by Singh through advocate Akshay Bafana alleged that Deshmukh called now-suspended API Sachin Vaze to his residence and told him that he had a target of ₹100 crore to collect per month. The PIL also alleged that a few days later Deshmukh called ACP Sanjay Patil of the Social Services branch of the Mumbai Police and discussed hookah parlours in the city, and also instructed other officers to conduct investigations into various crimes “as per his whims”.

Singh’s PIL stated that he had written to the chief minister and other leaders and apprised them of Deshmukh’s meetings with the police officers and interference in the functioning of the police force but rather than taking action against Deshmukh, a March 17 order of the home department transferred him to the Home Guards. The PIL also pointed to the unceremonious transfer of Shukla after she reported the interference by Deshmukh in matters pertaining to postings and transfers in Maharashtra to the Director General of Police who in turn informed the additional chief secretary home department.

In light of this, the PIL sought an urgent, independent, unbiased, uninfluenced, impartial and fair investigation in the various corrupt malpractices of Deshmukh by the CBI among other prayers.