The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
Pic/Nimesh Dave
Spotless under the spotlight
A railway porter tirelessly sweeps the floor at a warehouse near Ram Mandir railway station
From the files of Rakesh Maria, IPS
This Friday (November 28) will mark the release of When It All Began (Penguin), the second book by Rakesh Maria, the 1981-batch IPS officer (retired on January 31, 2017), as Director General of Police, Commandant General of Home Guards, and Director of Civil Defence, Maharashtra. As the former top cop who served in Mumbai in different capacities, including Police Commissioner, Maria is known for his deep involvement in taking down Mumbai’s organised crime groups, as well as solving some of the most high-profile cases that shook the city.
This title provides a gripping account of the rise of the city’s most infamous criminals in the early 1980s, depicting the operations and lives of known smugglers-turned-mafia dons running parallel syndicates from the Mumbai docks — Karim Lala and Haji Mastan, as well as the ascent of Dawood Ibrahim and his criminal empire.
Rakesh Maria visits the site of the first crime he investigated in Padmanagar Zopadpatti in Mankhurd. FILE PIC/RANE ASHISH
While Let Me Say It Now, Maria’s first book, dealt with his stint as Mumbai’s Police Commissioner, this latest offering is an in-depth look at the city’s violent gang wars during his tenure in Mumbai as Deputy Commissioner of Police. It follows how petty thieves and smugglers turned into dreaded mafia bosses. Drawing on decades of first-hand experiences, Maria relates his insider knowledge of a world he tried to dismantle, underlining the human motives for every crime. Maria’s career is largely characterised by emphasising the importance of human intelligence in the solving of crimes. He repeatedly tells young officers that technology can be helpful, but it will never replace good instincts and proper observation.
“Detection isn’t just a skill. It’s a mindset,” he told this diarist during a previous interview. One of his most memorable lessons came from his first crime detection in the city (soon after his first posting as DCP, Zone IV) a case involving a woman and her paramour from Padmanagar Zopadpatti in Mankhurd, who hacked Alam Qureshi, 45, a fitter at the docks, to death, dismembered his body, and dumped it at a dumping ground in Deonar in May 1984. Decades later, a similar case involving Maria Susairaj, who reported a missing person (Neeraj Grover) at the Malad police station on May 9, 2008, would come to light. Maria’s instinct told him she was behind the crime. “In every case, everyone is a suspect,” he says. With this release, Maria’s legacy as one of Mumbai’s most perceptive and determined police officers continues.
Big little splash
Dombivli-based Aanvi Suvarna (below) celebrated her 10th birthday on November 20 with a gruelling 17-km swim from Atal Setu to the Gateway of India. She clocked two hours and 44 minutes, against all odds. “Her training was tough, but she was focused on putting the spotlight on open-water swimming in the city. She’s now preparing for a 30-km open-sea swimming record,” Vilas Mane, her coach, revealed to us.
Laburnum love
A Laburnum tree in Kharghar (right) Dharmendra as botanist Professor Tripathi in Chupke Chupke. PICS COURTESY/V SHUBHALAXMI, Youtube
Fans will remember actor Dharmendra’s quirky botanist character Professor Tripathi from Chupke Chupke (1975). But did you know that off-screen, the late icon had a soft spot for the Laburnum (Amaltas) tree? “In 2014, Hema Malini consulted the Bombay Natural History Society to obtain a large Laburnum tree sapling. We obliged, and reached their doorstep.
When we sat down with Dharam ji later, he revealed that his village in Ludhiana had a similar old tree that he had to leave behind when he moved to Mumbai decades ago. He forever longed to have the same Amaltas near him,” shared former BNHS CEC head Dr V Shubhalaxmi. This discovery got us humming another classic Veeru tune: Yeh dosti, hum nahi todenge.
A few good men in Koldongri
(From left) Parth Nandvikar, Rugved Jadhav, and Ravindra Jadhav hand over the wallet to Shekhar Harad. PICS COURTESY/RAVINDRA JADHAV
The discovery of a lost wallet set off quite the detective drama in Andheri on November 19. Seventeen-year-old Parth Nandvikar and 13-year-old Rugved Jadhav spotted a wallet with Rs 10,000 in cash, and personal documents, near an ATM in Koldongri. Rugved’s father Ravindra told us, “We pulled all strings, including a movie-style Facebook hunt for the owner.
We finally approached the Sahar RTO with the documents in the wallet, and tracked the owner, Shekhar Harad. On November 23, we finally handed the wallet over.” Every penny earned in Mumbai comes at the cost of blood, sweat and tears, Jadhav senior reminded us. “Harad offered us a token amount as appreciation, but we politely declined it. It was never ours,” he added. Perhaps, there really are some things money can’t buy.
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