Mumbai: CP on night vigil sends lazy cops on bandobast

Mumbai Mirror

• Those caught sleeping or watching cricket on TV told to report for gruelling 10-day World Cup duty

 

Mumbai, 22 March 2011: While the rest of the city is trying to find a way into the Wankhede Stadium for the World Cup final on April 2, the new police commissioner has found a novel way to punish errant cops.

 

Arup Patnaik is assigning those found guilty of shirking on bandobast duty for the match, ensuring that they will be around the venue for 10 days, working 12-hour shifts with no breaks, but not get a chance to enter the stadium and watch the action.

 

The new CP conducted a surprise check at three police stations on Sunday night - Worli, Bandra, and Bangur Nagar - and found some policemen either sleeping or busy watching the India vs West Indies match on TV instead of being involved in the special Holi security arrangement.

 

At Worli, for example, Senior PI Vasant Tajane was having a snooze in his anti-chamber when Patnaik arrived.

 

Even after a constable came and told Tajane that the CP was in the building, it took about eight minutes for him to wake up and greet him.

 

Tajane has been asked to report to the control room for “special duty” (or, World Cup bandobast) for the next 10 days.

 

At Bangur Nagar, PI Dnyaneshwar Diwade, responsible for administration, was pulled up because the police station was untidy, with seized vehicles parked clumsily across the premises. He was also asked to report to the control room for World Cup duty.

 

And at Bandra, a constable attached to the Quick Response Team had locked himself inside the armoury, where he was watching Zaheer Khan’s bowling when the CP arrived. He has been suspended.

 

Cops standing on Marine Drive, opposite the Wankhede stadium, during the NZ vs Canada match

 

While the CP’s staff did not comment on Diwade and the constable, they said that Tajane - who has received several commendations including the Police medal during his stint in the Anti-Terroism Squad - would be helpful during the World Cup.

 

“Tajane has lots of experience and is a highly decorated officer. We have decided to utilise his services for the coming World Cup final bandobast,” DCP Rajkumar Vhatkar, a spokesperson for the CP, told Mumbai Mirror.

 

But the real story is that the new Commissioner wanted to shake up these officers, who are used to a comfortable life at the police stations, by keeping them on the road for a duty cycle that is among the least sought after in the force.

 

For the next 10 days leading to the World Cup final, South Mumbai will get a security cover similar to what was provided during US President Barack Obama’s visit last year.

 

In all, 2000 policemen, led by DCPs Sunil Paraskar and Quaisar Khalid, will monitor the situation round the clock, with special emphasis on team movement between the Taj Mahal hotel and the stadium.

 

“The big problem with this kind of naka bandi duty, especially at cricket matches, is that you have to stand at one spot on the road for hours together. You have to manage the huge crowd, and you cannot move for a second until someone takes your spot,” explained a senior police officer. “These PIs and Senior Pis usually leave the police station by evening. They’re not accustomed to spending long days in the sweltering heat. It’s a punishment they will not forget.”

 

But while the move is leading to cheers in several quarters of the force, other officers in-charge of police stations are most unhappy. “If there is a TV in the room, what is wrong with watching it?” asked a Senior PI in Western suburb police station. “Why don’t they remove all the sets, starting from the CP’s Office? Then there will be no problem.”