Mumbai Police chief shares personal mobile nos, solicits public cooperation

Mumbai, March 3 (IANS) Setting a new trend in public outreach, newly-appointed Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey on Thursday issued a public message and shared his personal mobile numbers on social media, soliciting peoples' cooperation for better policing.

Recalling his long 30-year-old association with Mumbai Police in different capacities, he said he was very much familiar with the city's requirements, though policing has changed over the years.

"And it is with this in mind that I am reaching out to you, seeking your support to work towards maintaining safety and security for all in our city of Mumbai," urged Pandey, who took charge of the hot seat from March 1.

Sharing his personal mobile number, he called upon citizens to contact him on his WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter with suggestions, etc., and promised to respond to all as far as possible.

"I too will share with you what work we are doing on a weekly basis on Facebook and working towards our motto of 'safety and security to all' in Mumbai," he assured.

Pandey, who was the Acting Director-General of Police for nearly a year, was named as the new Mumbai Commissioner of Police, a DGP-rank posting on February 28.

Even as acting DGP, Pandey had shared his mobile number with even police constables, interacted with them in person and via social media platforms, flagging off a new style of inclusiveness, which he has now extended to the common citizens.

Occasionally, Pandey - reputed as a no-nonsense, upright IPS officer of the 1986 batch - also voiced his concerns on social media over the shortage of officers plaguing certain key departments and urged his senior colleagues to opt for such postings.

An IIT-Kanpur alumnus, Pandey was always considered a 'political hot potato', but earned laurels for his handling of the tense Dharavi during the 1992-1993 communal riots that engulfed the city in the wake of the demolition of the disputed structure of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya.