Atala & a politician's son It’s all mess. What I feel that police are not interested in digging further into police-drug peddler nexus because they will have to empty at least one fourth of its department and make them sit on the suspension bench.
When for the first time I stumbled upon the video loaded on youtube, in which an unknown foreigner was bragging about his links with the police, it was difficult for me to digest what I saw. In movies we have always seen how corrupt officers attached to anti-narcotic cell were clandestinely pushing drugs in the open market. But we always assumed that it's a movie plot. Here in Goa, in the past, instances of police planting drugs on foreigners to extort money have been reported. Few police officers were also suspended and subsequently reinstated for this crime. But here, it was a case of police allegedly selling drugs confiscated in the raids. This was something highly unexpected. Moreover, the drug peddler (later identified as Atala) was naming Ashish Shirodkar, a police officer. I had informal chat with Ashish few months back when he was heading anti-narcotic cell. Standing in the gallery outside deputy inspector general's office, Ashish had almost convinced me to believe that ANC could not do a great job because of shortage of resources. He narrated how the vehicle given by narcotics control bureau to ANC is put in service of a senior officer forcing anti-narcotic guys to patrol beach belts on two wheelers. Atala was a new finding for the journalistic world. When Atala's story was broken, Dudu alias David Griham was the talk of town. ANC was busy selectively leaking the information to its favourite scribes on the his interrogation. The newspaper columns were filled with tales of Dudu, who had attained a mafia tag by then. Director General of Police Bhimsen Bassi was settling after a felicitation function for ANC for nabbing Dudu, when this story surfaced. It was unexpected for police, who were bragging of nailing drug mafia and to a great extent curbing drug trade in the coastal belt. What happened to Atala next is a history and the issue is covered by every newspaper in detail. On Atala's issue, Crime Branch was forced to investigate. Their investigation speaks for their unwillingness to probe police-drug peddler links. Even before the dust could settle on Atala's case, another bolt came from blue. Atala's girlfriend from Sweden, Lucky Farmhouse, gave her interview to PTI and Goa media including Gomantak Times. What she told in the interview was confirmation of what has been alleged in the past by Fiona Mackeown, mother of scarlet Eden Keeling. Lucky said that son of a politician was visiting Atala's place often. Ironically, Crime Branch was reportedly unlucky in locating Lucky for over a month. Lucky said `she was ready for police interrogation but no one contacted her'. She just read on internet that police were seeking help from Interpol to reach her. If we in the media with the little resources available can get Lucky in Sweden over email, can't police do it? It's almost a week after she gave the interview and still nothing seems to be moving on ground, except for few phone calls from the crime branch asking for Lucky's details. It's all mess. What I feel that police are not interested in digging further into police-drug peddler nexus because they will have to empty at least one fourth of its department and make them sit on the suspension bench. There is complete lack of political will to punish the culprits. Whatever is being done is through media pressure. But how long will media continue pressurizing? There is one more irony in the police department. It may be coincidence or deliberate. Raids on drug traffickers or peddlers are being conducted just after Home Minister Ravi Naik and DGP Bassi claimed that there are no drugs in the state. In the first instance, little after Sunburn party mess up, Naik held a press conference to claim that Goa had no drugs. Just a day after that, there were series of raids by district police led by Bosco George and ANC led by Veenu Bansal. This is not an isolated instance. Last week, Bassi said that `drugs do not exist in Goa' and same night Calangute police raided a Nigerian and confiscated huge quantity of drugs. This is entire confusion. Mess... I still remember five years back, when in Sunaparant, we exposed a rave party through sting operation, majority of officers from Anti narcotic cell were transferred. Manohar Parrikar was then a chief minister and allegations were levelled against his cabinet colleagues that they were sheltering this trade in the coastal belt. BJP legislator's inclination towards helping the drug peddlers was visible even during last Assembly session when Siolim legislator Dayanand Mandrekar asked state government's intervention to release a youth caught in a drug case and lodged in Mumbai jail. So when Parrikar insists for a CBI inquiry into politician's son coming to Atala's place, he should also be open for a shock because his own party colleague may also be involved in it and not a congress politician's son. Never know! http://www.goanews.com/blogs_disp.php?bpid=57
