What is extortion?
It is the practice of obtaining something, especially money, through force or threats.
In today's scenario we are witnessing a sea change in governance. There was a time when underworld gangs used to extort money and Mumbai police used to catch the extortionists. Now, police officers are assigned to carry out extortions and send the money to the minister
A letter written by former Mumbai Police chief Parambir Singh has let out a cat among the pigeons inside the Mantralaya. Receiving comments from Shiv Sena leaders indicate that they are defending Parambir Singh and they want the Home Minister Anil Deshmukh to quit. On the other hand, comments from NCP leaders indicate are defending Anil Deshmukh and they want to trap the ex-police chief.
One positive outcome from this confrontation between Shiv Sena and NCP is that extortions made by Mumbai Police from restaurant and bar owners have now been exposed by none other than the city police chief. It is now public knowledge how top political leaders use the police, both as an instrument and a weapon. They use police as an instrument for carrying out extortion, and as a weapon to intimidate people. The latest example of this unbridled terror is the case of intimidating the nation’s top industrialist Mukesh Ambani.
Ex-police chief Parambir Singh has indirectly exposed the motive behind parking of a vehicle laden with explosives outside’s Mukesh Ambani’s residence. The letter written by the former Mumbai police commissioner to the Chief Minister clearly exposes how the Home Minister was using an assistant police inspector Sachin Vaze to carry out such kind of extortions.
It is now clear that Sachin Vaze needed to derive out or to extort a huge sum of money from Mukesh Ambani. The act of parking a vehicle, filled with gelatin sticks, outside Ambani’s residence, with a threatening letter left inside, was meant to terrorize the industrialist. It is considered to be one of the biggest extortion cases.
The common people, only suspected that some ministers in Maharashtra may have been extorting money and police are accustomed to doing weekly extortion, but the reals scenario is far different from these kinds of mere assumptions. As we cannot pertain any kind of evidences but for now the former police chief of Mumbai has given in writing that the Home Minister used to call his officers and gave them a “target” of collecting Rs 100 crore every month.
National Investigation Agency (NIA)-
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) found that it was Sachin Vaze who had planted the car laden with explosives outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence, and there were some evidences of at least five vehicles connected with Vaze used in this case of scaring Ambani, and Vaze tried to remove evidences, the Home Minister felt that the image of Mumbai Police has been sullied. He took this as an opportunity to shunt out the Police Commissioner, and exclaimed to the media that it was not a routine transfer, and that Paramabir Singh “had committed unpardonable mistakes”. Parambir Singh wrote a letter to the Chief Minister and pointedly mention that he had complained about Deshmukh to both chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar in the past.
Misuse of power-
This is considered to be a wider issue as the misusage of power to extort the money by the help of police.
The most tragic part of this is that nobody is bothered about the people who are suffering because of rampant extortions led in various places of Maharashtra. Nobody is speaking about the owners of bars and restaurants who have to shell out money from their earnings. These bar and restaurant owners are helpless in front of police. For them, it does not matter the least, whether the Home Minister or Police Commissioner is changed. Pay they must.
Conclusion-
Ultimately, it is the people, who will have to decide. They will exercise their right to vote at the time of elections and punish the corrupt. People today in Maharashtra are sad and unhappy with both the Shiv Sena and its leader Uddhav Thackeray. . No other senior police officer had ever had courage which Parambir Singh has and didi in the history of Maharashtra politics.
It’s possible, Paramabir may have to pay for this but his act will surely deter the ‘extortionists’. Hoping that a Home Minister or a Chief Minister will now fear before ordering collection of extortion money. The media plays a very important role and should be more alert so that more extortion of money can get privilege and also more police officers may now muster the courage to speak and tell the truth.If this episode results in reduction in cases of extortion, we should thank Paramabir Singh for that.
References
The Indian Times
MAHARASHTRA EXTORTION DISPUTE
What is extortion?
It is the practice of obtaining something, especially money, through force or threats.
In today's scenario we are witnessing a sea change in governance. There was a time when underworld gangs used to extort money and Mumbai police used to catch the extortionists. Now, police officers are assigned to carry out extortions and send the money to the minister
A letter written by former Mumbai Police chief Parambir Singh has let out a cat among the pigeons inside the Mantralaya. Receiving comments from Shiv Sena leaders indicate that they are defending Parambir Singh and they want the Home Minister Anil Deshmukh to quit. On the other hand, comments from NCP leaders indicate are defending Anil Deshmukh and they want to trap the ex-police chief.
One positive outcome from this confrontation between Shiv Sena and NCP is that extortions made by Mumbai Police from restaurant and bar owners have now been exposed by none other than the city police chief. It is now public knowledge how top political leaders use the police, both as an instrument and a weapon. They use police as an instrument for carrying out extortion, and as a weapon to intimidate people. The latest example of this unbridled terror is the case of intimidating the nation’s top industrialist Mukesh Ambani.
Ex-police chief Parambir Singh has indirectly exposed the motive behind parking of a vehicle laden with explosives outside’s Mukesh Ambani’s residence. The letter written by the former Mumbai police commissioner to the Chief Minister clearly exposes how the Home Minister was using an assistant police inspector Sachin Vaze to carry out such kind of extortions.
It is now clear that Sachin Vaze needed to derive out or to extort a huge sum of money from Mukesh Ambani. The act of parking a vehicle, filled with gelatin sticks, outside Ambani’s residence, with a threatening letter left inside, was meant to terrorize the industrialist. It is considered to be one of the biggest extortion cases.
The common people, only suspected that some ministers in Maharashtra may have been extorting money and police are accustomed to doing weekly extortion, but the reals scenario is far different from these kinds of mere assumptions. As we cannot pertain any kind of evidences but for now the former police chief of Mumbai has given in writing that the Home Minister used to call his officers and gave them a “target” of collecting Rs 100 crore every month.
National Investigation Agency (NIA)-
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) found that it was Sachin Vaze who had planted the car laden with explosives outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence, and there were some evidences of at least five vehicles connected with Vaze used in this case of scaring Ambani, and Vaze tried to remove evidences, the Home Minister felt that the image of Mumbai Police has been sullied. He took this as an opportunity to shunt out the Police Commissioner, and exclaimed to the media that it was not a routine transfer, and that Paramabir Singh “had committed unpardonable mistakes”. Parambir Singh wrote a letter to the Chief Minister and pointedly mention that he had complained about Deshmukh to both chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar in the past.
Misuse of power-
This is considered to be a wider issue as the misusage of power to extort the money by the help of police.
The most tragic part of this is that nobody is bothered about the people who are suffering because of rampant extortions led in various places of Maharashtra. Nobody is speaking about the owners of bars and restaurants who have to shell out money from their earnings. These bar and restaurant owners are helpless in front of police. For them, it does not matter the least, whether the Home Minister or Police Commissioner is changed. Pay they must.
Conclusion-
Ultimately, it is the people, who will have to decide. They will exercise their right to vote at the time of elections and punish the corrupt. People today in Maharashtra are sad and unhappy with both the Shiv Sena and its leader Uddhav Thackeray. . No other senior police officer had ever had courage which Parambir Singh has and didi in the history of Maharashtra politics.
It’s possible, Paramabir may have to pay for this but his act will surely deter the ‘extortionists’. Hoping that a Home Minister or a Chief Minister will now fear before ordering collection of extortion money. The media plays a very important role and should be more alert so that more extortion of money can get privilege and also more police officers may now muster the courage to speak and tell the truth.If this episode results in reduction in cases of extortion, we should thank Paramabir Singh for that.
References
The Indian Times