Bookies fiasco scorches crime branch

MUMBAI: The state government is considering transferring joint commissioner of police (crime) Sridhar Wagal in view of alleged lapses by the crime branch ever since he took charge on March 21 last year.
Official sources told TNN that the government is likely to post a joint CP from the 1980 batch of the IPS as Mr Wagal''s successor. When contacted, Mr Wagal said, "Our job is to do our duty.The performances are there for everyone to see."
Sources said that the government was "disturbed" about a series of lapses by the crime branch in the last few months, the latest being the release of 23 bookies by its Kandivli unit on Friday.
The bookies, including Shobhan Kalachowkie, Kishore Soni, Jagdish Sisodia, Jayanti Malad and Sunil Malad, were picked up from a hotel in Malad and released allegedly when a senior crime branch officer called up the unit in-charge, senior inspector Rajan Ghule.
Police Commissioner Ranjit Sharma has ordered deputy commissioner of police (detection) Pradeep Sawant to conduct an inquiry into the release of the suspects. But sources in the police wonder how Mr Sawant will be able to probe the matter in which an officer senior to him is involved.
Mr Wagal, however, said the bookies were only "picked up" for questioning. "They were not doing anything illegal. Nothing incriminating was found on them. The police took down their names and released them," he said.
He said these bookies would be detained on Wednesday when India plays Zimbabwe, England plays Namibia and Sri Lanka plays Canada.
Sources said the government had drawn much flak for the crime branch''s recent lapses—allowing Ghatkopar blast accused Mohammed Yunus to escape, allowing Abdul Karim Telgi, the kingpin behind the Rs 2,200 crore fake stamp papers racket, undue liberties, and failing to make any headway in the blast at Vile Parle on January 27 in which 32 people received injuries.