Anti-Gangster Task Force, SIT formed to deal with gangs, probe paper leaks

JAIPUR: Rajasthan Police on Saturday constituted a new unit called Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) to tackle organised crime and gangs, and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe paper leaks in recruitment examinations.

DGP Umesh Mishra signed the orders for the establishment of these two agencies a day after Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma announced the decision soon after his swearing-in ceremony.

AGTF, to be headed by ADGP (crime) Dinesh MN, has been assigned the task of identifying organised criminal syndicates and gangs and taking action against them.

The new force has also been mandated to coordinate with national investigation agencies and those in different states to keep a close eye on gangsters operating in and affecting Rajasthan. AGTF will have 40 personnel assigned with various tasks.

ADGP (technical services) VK Singh has been appointed as the SIT chief. This agency will investigate cases of paper leaks already registered so that the accused could face severe punishment.

The SIT will also facilitate the seizure of assets of the paper-leak accused and take steps to stop paper leaks.

The SIT will have 15 personnel. The tasks the SIT will handle were previously handled by Special Operations Group (SOG), which has several success stories. SOG eliminated notorious gangster Anandpal Singh in 2017, dismantled a major rape-cum-blackmailing extortion racket, and led investigations into cases like the REET paper leak.

The immediate task before AGTF will be to address the growing menace of organised criminal gangs and their leaders such as Lawrence Bishnoi, Rohit Godara and Virendra Charan, said sources. The mushrooming of criminal syndicates involved in smuggling, extortion and bootlegging has become a major cause for concern in the state in recent years. This issue gained so much prominence that law and order became a major focus for BJP during the assembly elections last month.

The establishment of AGTF comes in response to high-profile murders, including those of gangster Raju Theth in Sikar last year and the killing of Shri Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena chief Sukhdev Singh Gogamedi in Jaipur earlier this month.