'Arvind Inamdar was disciplined, straightforward and outspoken'

Arvind Inamdar

Former Director General of Police of Maharashtra, Arvind Inamdar, passed away in the wee hours of Friday in Mumbai. He was 79 and was being treated at Harkishandas Hospital in Girgaum.

Inamdar was admitted to the hospital last week and breathed his last 2:20am on Friday. His last rites were held at Chandanwadi Crematorium where several police officers, many of whom were his students, were present.

Inamdar, an IPS officer, served as the DGP between October 1997 and January 2000. He resigned over alleged political interference.

He shot to fame in 1993 when he investigated the infamous Jalgaon human trafficking case along with IPS officer Meeran Borwankar and the then Superintendent of Police Deepak Jog. It had come to light that several businessmen, politicians and other influential people had drugged or kidnapped and raped over 350 women. Survivors included schoolchildren too.

Inamdar is also known for tutoring the famous 1983 batch of policemen, who later became ‘encounter specialists'. Vijay Salaskar, Prafulla Bhosale, Pradeep Sharma, Ramesh Mahale, Ravindra Anger were among them.

"Our batch was different because of the training given by Inamdar Sir. He was disciplined, straightforward and outspoken. He made our journey to becoming police officers a memorable one," said Bhosale, a retired police officer known for his encounters.

"Sir had a very close eye on each and every candidate. You can imagine how tough the training must have been because some candidates left halfway. Punctuality was another one of his qualities. Also, he emphasised on perfection. Many candidates were from rural areas. Sir taught them how to eat with spoons and forks. He used to say that we will be entering society as police officers and one day will become senior inspectors, and as such we must perfect such skills," Bhosale said.

Inamdar was cremated with full state honours at Chandanwadi Crematorium on Friday. Pic/ Suresh Karkera

"In our batch of 400, 70 candidates failed as sir didn't find them fit to be officers; it was very unusual. But, he was very particular about policing skills.

Unfortunately, I never got a chance to work with him. But I am eternally indebted to him," added Bhosale.

Mahale, known for his noteworthy investigations into the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, said, "When we began training, we were like rough stones. Inamdar sir chiselled our character and transformed. Whatever I am today, whatever good things I did during my service, it was because of him."

"We were pushed to be perfect in both, paper work and fieldwork. He wanted us to stand out among hundreds of officers," Mahale said.

Mahale remembers a particular incident which shows Inamdar's trust in him. "When I was posted at Dadar police station, someone had complained to him that I was being biased in a case. Sir told him, ‘He is my student and he will not do such a thing'. After two days, I sent papers asking for approval of action to Inamdar sir. He was delighted as he was proved right. He told me about this incident several years later," Mahale said.

A few years ago, Inamdar formed the Arvind Inamdar foundation to felicitate retired cops.

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