Mumbai court declares IPS officer Param Bir Singh 'proclaimed offender' in extortion case
Mumbai, Nov 17: A magistrate's court here on Wednesday declared former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh a "proclaimed offender" in an extortion case registered against him and some other police officers in the city.
Singh, currently posted as Director General of Home Guards, attended his office last in May, after which he went on leave. The state police had told the Bombay High Court in October that his whereabouts were not known.
The crime branch of Mumbai Police, which is probing the extortion case, had sought the proclamation against him, saying that the IPS officer could not be traced even after the issuance of a non-bailable warrant.
Under section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, a court can publish a proclamation requiring an accused to appear if a warrant issued against him or her cannot be executed.
As per section 83, after issuing such a proclamation the court can also order attachment of the proclaimed offender's properties.
Former assistant police inspector Sachin Waze is also an accused in the case, registered at the Goregaon police station in the city.
Besides Param Bir Singh, co-accused Vinay Singh and Riyaz Bhatti were also declared as proclaimed offenders by additional chief metropolitan magistrate S B Bhajipale on Wednesday.
Bimal Agrawal, a real estate developer and hotelier, had alleged that the accused extorted Rs 9 lakh from him for not conducting raid on two bars and restaurants which he ran in partnership, and also forced him to buy two smartphones worth around Rs 2.92 lakh for them.
The incidents occurred between January 2020 and March 2021, he had claimed.
Following his complaint, a case was filed under Indian Penal Code sections 384 and 385 (both pertaining to extortion) and 34 (common intention) against six accused.
Singh is facing an extortion case in Thane too.
The IPS officer was shunted out from the post of Mumbai police commissioner in March 2021 after Waze was arrested in the case of the SUV with explosives found near industrialist Mukesh Ambani's south Mumbai residence `Antilia' and the subsequent death of Thane businessman Mansukh Hiran.
Singh was then appointed as Director General, Home Guards, following which he accused then Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption, a charge the latter denied.
Deshmukh later stepped down as minister and the CBI registered a case against him based on Singh's allegations.
Singh was last seen in public on April 7, when he appeared before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) here to record statement in the Antilia bomb scare case. The CBI also recorded his statement in the Deshmukh case. He last attended office on May 4, following which he went on leave citing health issues, a senior official said.
Singh then sought an extension of leave claiming he had undergone a surgery. In August he requested one more extension.
On October 20, the police told the Bombay High Court that he was "not traceable", and therefore they can not continue an earlier assurance not to arrest him in a case under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The HC was hearing a petition filed by Singh seeking to quash the FIR in the case, registered on the complaint of harassment filed by police inspector Bhimrao Ghadge.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
