3rd non-bailable warrant issued against ex-Mumbai top cop Param Bir Singh

A magistrate court here on Wednesday issued a non-bailable warrant (NBW) against former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh in connection with a extortion case registered at Marine Drive police station.

This is the third NBW issued against Singh. Earlier also, courts had issued warrants against Singh in two other cases of extortion, one of them registered at Goregaon in Mumbai and another in neighbouring Thane.

The extortion case at the Marine Drive police station was registered against Singh and seven others based on a complaint filed by real estate developer Shyamsunder Agrawal on July 22 this year.

On Wednesday, additional chief metropolitan magistrate R M Nerlikar issued the NBW against Singh in connection with the case.

The Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is conducting a probe into the case, had earlier sought a non-bailable warrant against the senior IPS offcer.

Singh created a "bad image" for Mumbai Police, special public prosecutor Shekhar Jagtap had earlier told the court.

"The notorious approach of Param Bir Singh, for ages, has created bad image of Mumbai Police and others," Jagtap had said.

The FIR names Param Bir Singh and seven others, including five police officers.

Two of the accused police officers - inspectors Nandkumar Gopale and Asha Korke - were arrested on Monday and remanded in the CID's custody for seven days on Tuesday.

The CID was also entrusted with the investigation of a case registered against Shyamsunder Agrawal under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) at Juhu police station for his alleged links with underworld gangster Chhota Shakeel.

Agrawal had alleged that based on this "false" case, Param Bir Singh and other police officers extorted money from him at the behest of his former business partner Sanjay Punamia.