Crimes like chain snatching and motorcar theft may appear trivial but can be very traumatizing for the common man. Tackling street crime is very important because it affects the common man the most and image of the police too. But with their diligence, Navi Mumbai police have set a good record in detection of such cases and are determined to completely control this crime.
“Policing is not a job tome, it is a passion,” says Dilip Sawant, DCP- Crime, Navi Mumbai in a conversation with Mohit Naik. An excerpt…
According to you, what are the major policing challenges in Navi Mumbai and what measures have been taken?
One of the major problems in Navi Mumbai is motor vehicle thefts. The instances of theft have increased in the past several months though other crimes like house breaking, chain snatching etc are under control. Almost 6000 cases of street crimes like chain snatching were registered last year. The recent statistics however have registered a drop of 10 % particularly in street crimes. Our team has solved about 91% cases which is noteworthy and is the highest percent of cases solved in the entire state. Average detection of chain snatching is around 30-40 percent with recovery.
The instances of crime towards women and senior citizens seem to be on the rise. Is there a system in place for their protection 24 / 7 ?
Women safety is always our priority. It is the responsibility of the police and every official should be sensitive toward such cases where women are involved. On a careful examination of these cases, I have realized that 60-70 percent of the rape cases reported are a result of love affairs gone wrong. The couples get into an intimate relationship on the pretext of getting married at a later date, if the plan to get married does not work out; the woman registers a rape case against her lover.
Genuine rape cases are very few, of which most of them have been solved by our teams. One of the important initiatives we have taken on this front is that we keep a track of rape cases. Our team coordinates with the victim every month and inquires with them if they are facing any problem or are being threatened by the family of the accused. This generally happens when the case has been registered against the accused or they have been sentenced to jail, but they are out on bail or payroll. Under this initiative, we have started a woman assistance cell headed by a lady police inspector. It is their job to be in touch with the victim and their family and ensure that they are not facing any harassment from the accused. And if they notice anything wrong then the concerned police station is informed and appropriate action is taken. The victim feels positive and secure that someone is looking after them.
What are the initiativestaken by you after yourappointment as DCP (HQ)Crime- Navi Mumbai?
Firstly, we have restructured the crime branch and set up a Narcotic cell which was very much needed. The Narcotic cell has done a good job and has managed to crack some big cases in the last couple of months. A social media lab has been set up with the help of IT that keeps a tab on the entire social networking platform. A criminal monitoring system has also been set up. These days, in most cases the crime is being committed by known criminals. So we keep a tab on all the history-sheeters that helps in investigation of cases. A separate criminal monitoring center keeps an eye on all the history sheeters. We maintain a detailed account of the crime for which they were arrested, the procedure followed after their arrest, number of cases registered against them, whether they are attending the court procedure or not etc. We have even started taking a video click of the accused because now-a-days it is very difficult to identify the person only with their picture. We therefore take a clip of the accused in which we note special features like their mannerisms that identifies them. After a period of time they are called again and the clips are updated.
Terrorist activities are on the rise, how equipped is the city police to fight against terrorism?
Actually, we are taking it even more seriously particularly after the Uran incident. If you notice, we have very long coastal area and we have activated all our coastal police stations. We are taking efforts to spread the importance of safety among the local people. We have identified people who are ready to help the police and have guided them about the precautions to be taken and also asked them to immediately contact us if they find anything suspicious around the coast. Because of the recent incidents people have become more alert which is an advantage to us.
What are your views on the recent encounter of eight terrorists held at Bhopal? Do you think it was a right move on the part of cops?
I like to stay away from controversies because we don’t have the exact knowledge about the incident; we know about it only through the media reports. So to express an opinion based on newspaper reports will not be correct. I can only say that as per law the police has the right to fire back if they are fired upon.
A no-confidence motion has been passed against NMMC commissioner Mudhe, any comments?
I would like to refrain from commenting on the issue. At the most I can say it is a political game.
How do you think we can create a strong nation?
In my view, we need to emphasize on the importance of education and create awareness about it. The asset of a nation is its population and unless it is educated we can’t think of creating a strong nation.
Any safety awareness campaign conducted by Navi Mumbai Police?
The campaign that is closest to my heart is that on the road accidents. In Navi Mumbai, more than 300 people die due to road accidents, so we conducted an awareness campaign through lectures in schools and colleges all over the city. Simultaneously, training sessions for traffic police were also conducted so that they can handle the situation easily. Many celebrities also joined us in this campaign in order to maximize the reach. This has hugely impacted and in comparison to last year the numbers have reduced to more than half. Saving someone’s life is most precious!
Have you ever experienced any political pressure in your work?
Fortunately, in Navi Mumbai there is no political pressure at all. Prior to this, I was Superintendent of Police, Sangli for three years and experienced some pressure.
Any important case that is etched in your memory?
During my posting as DCP zone VI- Mumbai, in the year 2009-10 you may recall a case registered at Nehru Nagar where a minor girl was raped and murdered. When I reached the spot, I found the body of a 4-year-old girl lying on the terrace of a building. After four days, we found body of another minor girl who was raped and murdered in the same locality. Around 10 days later, the incident was repeated again. Because of these back to back incidents the city was in a state of shock. It was a very difficult period for the police too, since there was no evidence whatsoever. We had formed a team of police officials to look after this case, but were not getting success with clues. Fortunately, after several links and investigations it was found that Javed, a 19-year-old boy working as a cable operator in the locality was responsible for it. On investigation, it was found that he was mentally ill. I personally monitored the case, and last year the accused was convicted for life until death with no payroll.
What would be your message to the readers, especially youngsters through the Protector Magazine?
Policing is not a job it is a passion for me. It is not a routine job from 9 am to 6 pm. We should be devoted to our work and that alone will give satisfaction.
Dilip Sawant
DCP (Crime) – Navi Mumbai
