CBI Submits Closure Report in Extortion Case Involving Ex-Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh
Mumbai, 30th January 2024: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has submitted a closure report in an extortion case involving former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh and others. The agency, citing a lack of substantial evidence, presented the report before the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Thane on January 18.
In the closure report, the CBI argued that the facts and circumstances surrounding the case do not support the allegations or reveal any incriminating evidence warranting prosecution against the accused individuals. The incident in question, dating back to 2016-2017 but reported in 2021, faced challenges as crucial evidence was no longer available when the case came to light.
Originally filed at Kopri Police Station in Thane by businessman Sharad Agarwal in July 2021, the case accused Singh and others, including a former deputy commissioner of police and real estate developers, of threatening and extorting ₹2 crore to acquire Agarwal’s land. The case was later transferred to the CBI.
The closure report emphasized the absence of corroborative evidence for the allegations made by the complainant. Despite a thorough verification of the claims, the CBI found a lack of independent evidence supporting the complainant’s version of events.
According to the CBI, Agarwal had voluntarily entered into a settlement to transfer his land without facing any pressure or intimidation. The agency highlighted that the complainant, who complained almost five years after the incident, failed to provide details substantiating his claims.
The court is expected to review the closure report in February. This extortion case is one among several FIRs filed against Singh in Maharashtra in 2021, a year in which he accused then-state home minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption after being removed from his position as Mumbai police commissioner in March 2021. Singh’s allegations came in the aftermath of the arrest of dismissed police officer Sachin Waze in connection with an explosives-laden vehicle found near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s residence in south Mumbai.
