Law and order in Bombay has collapsed: Governor

Maharashtra Governor Dr P C Alexander has openly admitted that the law and order in Bombay has collapsed.

Speaking to the media in Panaji, Dr Alexander blamed the cut-throat competition between rival gangs and the underworld-builder-film industry nexus for the sorry state of affairs.

The much-touted ''Bombay is a safe city'' claim has taken a severe beating as the news has spread far and wide, Dr Alexander said.

Clarifying that his observation did not imply that there was an increase in daylight robberies, minor skirmishes or house-breaking incidents, the governor said, ''The fact that the film and building industry people are bumped off in daylight clearly indicates the collapse of law and order.''

Referring to the spurt in police encounters, the governor said they would be ineffective in tackling gangland crime. ''Since we live in a democracy, we have to observe human rights rules. Killing criminals in counter-attacks when one's life is not in danger must be condemned,'' he said.

The governor, however, expressed confidence in the Bombay police who ''can handle the situation effectively''. Praising Police Commissioner Ronnie Mendonca, the governor said, ''He is an honest man, a man of principles and a down-to-earth personality.''

Asked why only criminals belonging to the Arun Gawli gang were being eliminated, the governor said that the freedom and autonomy enjoyed by the police was a little too much.

The police have come to the conclusion that Gawli's aide and Akhil Bharatiya Sena general secretary Jitendra Dabholkar was killed due to inter-gang rivalry, he said.

Asked why the killings were not viewed from a political angle, he said, ''I don't know. Whenever such killings took place, I personally talked to the police commissioner and the home secretary, and they categorically denied that these murders were politically motivated.''

Asked why he did not call the ''remote control'' (Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray), the governor said he cannot do that. ''I can only call the the chief minister,'' he said.

At present, four major gangs are trying to establish their supremacy over Bombay, he said. Dawood Ibrahim now controls his empire from Karachi after he fled Dubai while Choota Rajan operates from Malaysia. The governor said the gangs run by Arun Gawli and Ashwin Naik are localised.

Earlier these gangs were involved in smuggling. They have now turned to peddling narcotics and contract killings. These operations are cleverly organised and the gangs have political connections, the governor said.

Compiled from the Marathi media by Prasanna D Zore