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ShareMumbai: The Bombay high court on Friday asked police commissioner D Sivanandhan to explain the rights and duties of a person who is designated as a "friend of police and an undercover agent".
Hearing a petition filed by Vikas Ganeriwal, a businessman from Malad, the high court has directed the police chief to file a personal affidavit in two weeks.
Ganeriwal had move high court earlier this month alleging that one Sudhir Jhunjhunwala, who calls himself a friend of the police and an undercover agent, had been harassing him for over a year and was trying to extort money by showing his official identity card issued by the Saki Naka police.
Expressing their curiosity, the division bench of justice JN Patel and justice Amjad Sayed has sought a detailed affidavit explaining the job description of such a post, if any.
Ashok Saraogi, Ganeriwal's advocate, argued that Jhunjhunwala had threatened his client and claimed that since he had the identity card issued by the police, he was now 'equivalent to the police'.
According to the petition, Jhunjhunwala had lodged an FIR earlier this year after which Ganeriwal was arrested. "In the police lock up, Jhunjhunwala assaulted him and even interrogated him," the petition said.
Ganeriwal had earlier sought information under the Right to Information Act regarding Jhunjhunwala's post. On November 20, 2008, he received a reply from Kaisar Ahmed, assistant commissioner of police, control room, east region. It said: "No police station has issued such an official identity card. However, API Majardekar of the Saki Naka police station had issued an identity card to Jhunjhunwala as he was known to him."
Defending Jhunjhunwala, advocate Aabad Ponda argued that his client and Ganeriwal were known to each other. He claimed that Jhunjhunwala was a businessman and the latter owed him money.
