Man who filed extortion complaint against Param Bir seeks to quash case to ‘undo herculean error’

A businessman who had lodged a complaint of extortion against former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, has moved the Bombay High Court seeking quashing of the case, claiming that he was coerced into complaining against the ex-top cop.

The complainant - Ketan Tanna - in his petition claimed he was also threatened to be implicated in false cases if he did not lodge a police complaint against Singh, and added that he now wants to “clear his conscience” by undoing the “herculean error” committed by him.

Tanna filed the petition earlier this week and it is likely to be heard on October 8.

The businessman in his plea alleged that at the time when Singh was embroiled in a controversy with the then Maharashtra government being ruled by the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance, a conspiracy was being hatched against the senior IPS officer.

Tanna claimed that he was called outside the bungalow of the then state home minister Anil Deshmukh and was informed by Sanjay Pandey, the then Director General of Police that he had to lodge a complaint of extortion against Singh.

In July 2021, Tanna had lodged a complaint with the Thane police alleging that between January 2018 and February 2019, when Singh was Thane police commissioner, he extorted Rs 1.25 crore from him by summoning him to the office of the Anti-Extortion Cell and threatening to frame him up in serious criminal cases.

Tanna in his plea said he was “under pressure to lodge the complaint and could not come out with the truth but wants to now clear his conscience” and hence seeks for the case to be quashed.

“The petitioner (Tanna) has looked back and realised the futility of indulging in incorrect acts to save oneself. The petitioner has realised that the truth has to prevail,” the plea said.

The plea sought the HC to undo the “herculean error” committed by Tanna and quash the case.

Tanna claimed that he was given to understand at the time that if he lodged the case against Singh then he would not be implicated in false cases.

“The petitioner has decided to unconditionally withdraw the allegations and the FIR and prosecution against all the accused,” the petition said.

Apart from Singh, the FIR also named 28 others, including Pradeep Sharma and other senior police officials and alleged gangster Ravi Pujari.

Singh was shunted out as the Mumbai police chief in February 2021 and transferred to the Home Guard after an SUV with explosives was discovered near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s residence in south Mumbai and police officer Sachin Waze was arrested in the case.

Singh later accused the then state home minister Anil Deshmukh of asking Sachin Waze to collect Rs 100 crore from hotels and bars in Mumbai every month, a charge which Deshmukh denied.