Cop who came in from the cold

One of the first things on Mamata Banerjee's mind after taking charge as West Bengal chief minister on May 20, 2011, was to shunt out Rajeev Kumar, then joint commissioner Kolkata Police, whose job, by default, involved intercepting telephone calls. That never happened but in eight years, the police officer has come a long way, traversing the ground from a suspect cop to the chief minister’s favourite.

It didn’t come easy, say sources. Banerjee's contention was that Kumar was snooping on opposition leaders at the behest of the Left Front, then in the government, and ought to be removed. It took a senior IPS officer, known to have fallen out of favour with the Left Front while in power, to convince Banerjee that Kumar, with his highly advanced technological skills, was an asset.

The rest is history. Earlier in the week, high drama unfolded when a large team from the CBI landed at Kumar's residence to interrogate him in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam. An unprecedented CBI vs Kolkata Police standoff played out outside the Commissioner's residence on Loudon Street. It finally precipitated a political crisis with Banerjee leading a dharna in protest.

During the three-day dharna that rocked the nation, Kumar, 53, bagged many accolades from the chief minister: The Kolkata police commissioner is among the best in the world; his integrity bravery and honesty are unquestioned; he is working 24X7 and so on.

Kumar is not entirely unworthy of such hyperbole. "Even his worst critic will praise his electronic surveillance skills," a source said. A computer science engineer from IIT Roorkee, Kumar is considered to be a toprated analyst. What comes handy in his kind of job is that he doesn't need to delegate it to his subordinates. So there is no apprehension of a leak in secrecy.

It is believed that his technical skills have also been used by the Centre as well. Former Delhi Police Commissioner, Neeraj Kumar, mentioned Kumar in his book, Dial D for Don. The book mentions that Kumar, then SSP (CID), had done extensive legwork, in the kidnapping case of Partha Pratim Roy Burman, chairman and managing director of Khadim Shoes in July 2001.

"He had heard hours of recorded conversation between Aftab Ansari, negotiating the ransom amount from Dubai, and the Burman family. Rajeev's team had arrested most of the perpetrators of the Burman kidnapping case, except the ringleaders Aftab Ansari and Asif Raza Khan," the book said.

The book also noted Kumar's contribution to the probe into the 2002 American Centre attack in Kolkata. Ansari was the mastermind of the attack in which four police constables and a private security guard were killed and 20 others injured. On the morning of January 22 that year, one Farhan Malik called Kumar claiming responsibility for the attack, but having heard the recording of the Burman kidnapping for hours, Kumar immediately recognised his voice and called him by his name. Ansari was caught off-guard and hung up.

He obtained a scanned copy of Ansari's passport and had all its details which he had shared with Neeraj Kumar, the Interpol and central agencies.

It is possible for Kumar to source all kinds of information, his colleagues said. He was also part of the STF of Kolkata Police, which was responsible for the crackdown on the Naxals. The team was formed during the Left Front regime.

Kumar’s proximity to the establishment, particularly Banerjee, got a leg-up when he assumed charge as commissioner of Biddhannagar Commissionerate. Kumar led the investigation into the Saradha scam as its initial cases were lodged in Biddhannagar police station. It was Kumar’s team that finally arrested Saradha group promoter Sudipta Sen and his aide Debjani Mukherjee.

Herein lies the CBI’s allegation against Kumar. He was heading the special investigation team set up to probe the chit fund scams, namely Saradha and Rose Valley. In the Supreme Court, the CBI alleged destruction of evidence in the Saradha scam against Kumar. The apex court, however, has made it clear that Kumar must cooperate in the investigation but cannot be arrested.

As Kumar and a CBI team prepare for the grilling in Shillong, a neutral place suggested by the Supreme Court, at stake is the image of not just two institutions but its political bosses as well.

Kumar, Kolkata Police chief, has earned praise for his electronic surveillance skills