Maharashtra Director General Sanjay Pandey has been appointed the Commissioner of Mumbai Police. (Express Photo: Ganesh Shirsekar) Newly-appointed Mumbai police commissioner Sanjay Pandey has reached out to Mumbaikars seeking their “support to work towards maintaining safety and security for all in our city” as he shared his personal mobile phone number on Facebook.
In the Facebook post late Wednesday, Pandey also asked citizens to contact him on his Facebook and Twitter profiles that he has been increasingly using to communicate with people. Pandey took over as the Mumbai police commissioner from Hemant Nagrale on Monday.
Pandey said in the post, “While I am familiar with Mumbai, policing has changed from the days when I worked in Mumbai. And it is with this in mind that I am reaching out to you seeking your support to work towards maintaining safety and security for all in our city of Mumbai.”
He added, “I am sharing my personal number 9869702747. You can always reach out to me on WhatsApp/text messages as well as facebook or Twitter @sanjayp_1. Suggestions big or small are all welcome. I will respond to all the messages as far as possible. I too will share with you what work we are doing on a weekly basis on facebook. I will look forward to hearing from you and working towards our motto of ‘safety and security to all’ in Mumbai.”
Pandey had shared his mobile number with police constables when he was the Maharashtra director general of police (DGP) and also interacted with them through social media platforms.
The senior official last served in Mumbai in the ’90s and was known for his work, especially in the Dharavi area where he was able to control the fallout of the 1992-93 riots. Following that, he headed the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) where he investigated the cobbler scam that had alleged links to politicians. However, he was sent on central deputation but resigned later to take up a job in the private sector before rejoining.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government appointed him Maharashtra’s DGP before the Bombay High Court forced it to remove him since he was not selected in the list of three officers recommended by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). The government removed him from the DGP’s post and then made him the commissioner. He is expected to have a short tenure as Mumbai police commissioner as he is due to retire in June.
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