What do the police do to keep a tab on habitual offenders who refuse to mend their ways? The police extern them from the city limits.
However, externed criminals are often on the loose in the city. They continue to indulge in criminal activities, like robbery and extortion.
Under the Bombay Police Act, a zonal deputy commissioner of police can act as a quasi-judicial authority and issue the externment order. A criminal can be externed for a period ranging from a few months to three years. He can appeal against the decision with the home department.
Mohammed Shaikh, 47 (name changed), has been arrested several times for robbery in south Mumbai. Currently, out on a bail, he was externed in February. But, he still roams around the city. “It is difficult to keep track of externed criminals. They are holed up in dingy places,” said a police official from Nagpada.
Similarly, Dev Krishna Mali, 40, who extorted money from slum dwellers in Dharavi, was externed. But he continued his old ways, till he was arrested and the police stumbled upon the externment order against him.
To create awareness among the public about taddipaars — externed criminals — police stations, like those in Powai, MIDC, Saki Naka, under the supervision of deputy commissioner of police KMM Prasanna have pasted posters of the criminals at prominent locations. The police hope that the public will help them crack down on
externed criminals still active in the city.
