Riot effect: Another top cop shifted

Riot effect: Another top cop shifted

After the promotion of former Mumbai police chief Arup Patnaik in the aftermath of the Azad Maidan riot, joint commissioner of police (law and order), Rajnish Seth was the second person to be shuffled. He was transferred to Force One as its inspector general on Wednesday. The decision to transfer Seth was taken in the annual meeting between senior police officers, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and home minister RR Patil. According to a senior police officer, Seth was aware that he would be transferred after the incident. “After Patnaik's promotion, Seth was given a feeler that he, too, would be transferred. In the meeting, Seth was told that the police and state government had to face a lot of criticism because of the August 11 incident,” said the officer. Patnaik had been promoted last week as the managing director of Maharashtra State Security Corporation, following criticism about police inaction during the violence. On August 11, Raza Academy and groups belonging to the Barelvi sect organised a rally at Azad Maidan to denounce violence against Muslims in Myanmar and Assam. But the rally was disturbed by a group of men who went on the rampage, torching OB vans, damaging vehicles, looting police weapons and molesting policewomen. Two people were killed while several, including 44 policemen, were injured. Sadanand Date, who was heading the Force One, has now been made the joint commissioner of police (law and order). Javed Ahmed, who was the additional director general (establishment) has now been made the additional director general (law and order), as the post was vacant after Satyapal Singh was made the new police chief. On the first day of the annual meeting, Chavan and Patil were given presentations on several ongoing crucial cases. Joint commissioner of police (crime) Himanshu Roy gave a presentation on the arrested 26/11 handler, Syed Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal.