IPS officer Sanjay Pandey returns back as top cop of Mumbai Police

New Delhi, March 1

In a new twist to the position of the top cop in Mumbai Police, senior officer Sanjay Pandey who was all of a sudden removed from the post of the Maharashtra DGP has been appointed as the acting as the Mumbai Police Commissioner. 

However, Pandey who has retirened as as the top cop of the most sought after position in Maharashtra Police, is due to retire in four months on June 30. 

The Mumbai Police has seen three police commissioners in a span of less than a year after the removal of Param Bir Singh in March last year.

On February 28 late evening, Pandey came to the Mumbai Police headquarters and took charge from Nagrale. 

The MVA government transferred the incumbent Hemant Nagrale to the post of managing director of Maharashtra State Security Corporation (MSSC). Nagrale is scheduled to retire in October 2022.

The Bombay High Court had pulled up the Maharashtra government for “favouring” Pandey for the post of Director General of Police (DGP), even though his name did not make it to the list of three officers shortlisted by the UPSC as per the Prakash Singh judgment.

Following this, Pandey was removed from the post of the acting DGP and senior officer Rajnish Seth was appointed as the new DGP of Maharashtra Police. 

This is the second time, the MVA government has made a DGP as Mumbai Police Commissioner.
Earlier, they had appointed Hemant Nagrale as the as the top cop who was holding the charge of Maharashtra DGP. 

It was during Pandey’s over 10-month tenure as the state DGP that the police registered nearly five FIRs against Singh. During this period, Maharashtra police also arrested Union Minister Narayan Rane in connection with the comments he made against Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray.