Just can't cope

Home minister goes. And after Sachin Waze’s arrest, at least half a dozen police officers are being investigated

- DNYANESH JATHAR

WHEN ANIL DESHMUKH resigned as the home minister of Maharashtra on April 5, after the Bombay High Court ordered a CBI probe into the allegation against him, he attributed it to moral correctness. Most others believed it was the result of an order by party president Sharad Pawar.

Pawar, after discussions with Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, his nephew, decided to save his Nationalist Congress Party and the Maha Vikas Aghadi government from further embarrassment in the aftermath of the Antilia bomb scare. The Shiv Sena and the Congress, the NCP’s allies in the MVA, sought Deshmukh’s resignation since the controversy first came to light, but the NCP had been backing him. The High Court order made things easier for all three parties. The Maharashtra government has appealed in the Supreme Court and Deshmukh, too, was considering filing his own appeal.

Deshmukh’s replacement is Dilip Walse-Patil, an NCP veteran who was minister for labour and state excise. He represents Ambegaon, Pune, in the state legislature and is in his seventh consecutive term. WalsePatil has experience in handling departments like finance, energy, and higher and medical education. A man of few words, Walse-Patil has the reputation of being highly efficient and a troubleshooter.

However, the task awaiting him is tough. He has to repair the immense damage done to the image of Mumbai and Maharashtra police after the arrest of assistant inspector Sachin Waze in connection with the Antilia bomb scare case and the alleged murder of Mansukh Hiren, and the allegation by former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh that Deshmukh had given a ₹100 crore monthly extortion target to Waze and ACP Sanjay Patil.