Absconding former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh was declared a ‘proclaimed offender’ (PO) under Section 82 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) in an extortion case by a metropolitan magistrate court in Mumbai on Wednesday, 17 November.
A day later, a Supreme Court bench asked, "Where is Param Bir Singh?" before agreeing to hear his plea for protection against arrest.
But what does a ‘proclaimed offender’ mean? What’s the case? Here’s all you need to know.
Who Is a Proclaimed Offender?
Being declared a PO means that the Mumbai Police can now designate Singh a wanted accused and start the process of declaring him a fugitive.
The power to declare someone a proclaimed offender comes from Section 82 of the CrPC.
If any court has reason to believe that a person against whom a warrant has been issued, has absconded or is concealing themself so that the warrant cannot be executed, the court can decide to proclaim the individual as a wrongdoer and publish a written proclamation requiring them to appear before the court within 30 days from the date the proclamation is published.
The court’s order came after the Mumbai Police’s crime branch, which is investigating an extortion case, filed an application in the court. The application had come after a third non-bailable warrant had been issued against Param Bir Singh on 10 November.
Through the Proclaimed Offender (PO) procedure, the court announces the individual as broadcasted wrongdoer and directs the police authorities to capture the individual and present them before the court.
Singh is the first ever former Mumbai police commissioner to be declared a proclaimed offender, while having been the second-most senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer serving in Maharashtra.
What’s the Case?
The case refers to an extortion call made to restaurateur Bimal Agarwal between January 2020 and March 2021. Apart from Singh, the accused include dismissed cop Sachin Waze, Sumit Singh alias Chintu, and Alpesh Patel.
Agarwal has alleged that the accused extorted Rs 11.92 lakh from him by threatening to register cases against two of his outlets – Boho Restaurant and BCB Bar, Hindustan Times reported.
Consequences of Being Declared a Proclaimed Offender
The former commissioner can now be arrested by any citizen of India at any time or place.
Declaration as a proclaimed offender becomes grounds for confiscation and cancellation of the person's passport, and the authorities need to begin the process for this immediately after the declaration is made. Once someone has been declared a proclaimed offender, it also becomes a ground to reject any applications for a new passport.
According to most government service rules, a PO cannot apply for any government job at any level throughout their life.
Perhaps most importantly, a court can order the attachment of any moveable or immoveable property which belongs to a PO, for reasons that have to be recorded in writing, as per Section 83 of the CrPC.
The court had on Monday, 15 November, sought an affidavit from the investigating officer in the case before taking a call on the issuance of proclamation, LiveLaw reported.
The investigating agency had informed the court that when their officers visited Singh’s Malabar Hill home on 10 November, the police guard told them that Singh had not visited the building in the last three months. The guard further said that neither did Singh’s family live there, nor did he know their whereabouts.
Maharashtra Govt Says Singh Is 'Not Traceable'
The Maharashtra government had informed the Bombay High Court on 20 October that Singh’s whereabouts were not known.
Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil had flagged reports that Singh had gone on leave from his post of DG Home Guards citing ill health on 5 May. Since there is suspicion that he may have left the country, a lookout notice has also been issued.
(With inputs from LiveLaw and Hindustan Times.)
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