Ernakulam rural SP Vaibhav Saxena set to assume new responsibility in NIA

KOCHI: After a commendable stint of one-and-a-half years as Ernakulam district police chief, Vaibhav Saxena, is set to take up a new role on central deputation. During his tenure, Vaibhav Saxena, brought in a distinctive and strategic approach to investigations which helped in cracking several complicated cases.

Saxena will assume charge as superintendent of police (SP) in NIA. While the people-friendly Saxena is stepping down, Hemalatha, currently the commandant of the Rapid Response and Rescue Force, will be taking over as the new district police chief.

Saxena took charge as the SP of Ernakulam rural police district on November 21, 2023. Immediately after taking over, he led a major drug bust in North Paravur, resulting in the seizure of 1.8 kg of MDMA worth crores of rupees, considered to be one of the biggest synthetic drug seizures in recent times. Following that, he launched an initiative named ‘Operation Clean,’ which led to the seizure of over 250 kg of ganja and nearly 4 kg of MDMA in a pan of just one-and-a-half years.

Amid one of these daring operations, his squad arrested Reginald Paul, a Nigerian national and the kingpin of a nation-wide narcotics network, from Bengaluru. Moreover, Saxena led the investigation into the much-discussed organ trafficking case and arrested the key accused, including Ram Prasad.

He solved several major murder cases including an incident in Perumbavoor where a husband killed his wife, Angamaly bar murder, Munnoorppilly Raghu murder, murder of an Odisha native, murder of a migrant worker in Muvattupuzha, and the Chendamangalam mass murder. His new mode of investigation, including psychological profiling and undercover questioning in the Kothamangalam girl murder case, which helped in identifying the accused, also got wide appreciation.

Moreover, he played a pivotal role in uncovering the infamous ‘half-price scam,’ arrested the key accused Ananthu Krishnan and recovered crores of rupees defrauded from gullible customers.

Saxena introduced and successfully implemented two key projects, including, ‘Urappu,’ where a special team from the SP office personally calls complainants to collect feedback, providing a sense of support and transparency, and ‘Urappu @ School,’ a collaborative programme with schools to engage students with police for awareness and guidance.

He was also known for his commitment to the welfare of police personnel. As part of this, officers with outstanding performance at each station received a ‘Good Service Entry’ (GSE) every month. Over 400 officers were honoured during his tenure.