MoS Bagwe's announcement of city top cop Satyapal Singh's transfer comes after having on several occasions shown he bears a grudge against the officer

Shunt or witch hunt directed at one man?

MoS Bagwe's announcement of city top cop Satyapal Singh's transfer comes after having on several occasions shown he bears a grudge against the officer

Is Commissioner of Police Dr Satyapal Singh being punished for having rubbed Minister of State for Home Ramesh Bagwe the wrong way?

Singh will soon be transferred, announced Bagwe in the Legislative Council while answering a question by member Neelam Gorhe on the growing crime rate in the city and the rest of the state.

The surprise announcement came after Shiv Sena's Gorhe and other opposition members demanded action against Singh in view of the deteriorating law and order situation in the state's information technology and education hub.

RR defends Singh
In a matter of hours, Home Minister R R Patil sprang to Singh's defence, saying it would not be proper to blame him for the soaring crime rate or the law and order situation in the city.

He added that such a transfer proposal could only be made in consultation with the Chief Minister and the Home Minister.

The differences between the minister and his junior came to the fore with Patil's comments to the press.
Bagwe has had an uneasy relationship with the city police on a number of issues.
u00a0
Primarily, he was unhappy over what he said was a reduction in his security cover by the city police, a grouse he expressed publicly a number of times.

He also mentioned several times that his suggestions to improve policing, such as increasing the number of police chowkies, were ignored.

Officer reacts
At first, Singh would not comment on Bagwe's announcement, but later in the day he said, "I have not been transferred."

He also defended his record. On the crime rate, he said it had not gone up in the city. "Serious crime cases have gone down," he said.

On the transfer announcement, former DGP Bhaskarao Misar said, "Maharashtra has passed an act which states that transfers will happen only according to guidelines. It also says that no commissioner can be transferred within three years of a posting. The government will take action against whichever authority takes the decision to effect such a transfer. The affected person has the right to go to court or approach the government. And the authority then has to explain the circumstances under which the decision was taken."