Not official say Maha CMO on Param Bir Singh’s Rs 100 crore letter; former top cop contradicts

Mumbai, Mar 21: Param Bir Singh, the former Mumbai Police commissioner who was sacked earlier this month, on Sunday confirmed that the sensational letter accusing Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption was sent from his email ID, reported news agency ANI.

This comes a day after the Maharashtra government said that the "unsigned letter" sent by Param Bir Singh is being verified because the former Mumbai Police commissioner's "email ID in the official record was different".

In the eight-page letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Singh alleged that Deshmukh used to call police officers to his official residence and give them a "collection target" from bars, restaurants and other establishments.

The Chief Minister''s Office, in a late night release, said Singh''s "unsigned letter to Thackeray" was not sent from his official email ID and efforts were on to contact him to verify it.

Ending the speculation, Singh later confirmed that he indeed emailed the letter, a signed copy of which will reach the government shortly.

The IPS officer claimed that the minister told Waze that he had set a target of collecting Rs 100 crore a month, half of it from nearly 1,750 bars, restaurants and similar establishments operating in the city.

Singh also claimed that Deshmukh "from day one" wanted a case of abetment of suicide to be registered in Mumbai after the death of Dadra and Nagar Haveli MP Mohan Delkar in a Mumbai hotel last month.

BJP leader and former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis sought Deshmukh's the resignation over the claims made by the IPS officer.

"We demand the home minister's resignation. If he doesn't, then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray must remove him. An impartial probe must be conducted. The letter also says the chief minister was informed about this earlier, so why didn't he act on it?" said Fadnavis, Leader of the Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly.