Mendonca takes charge

August 21: Ronald Hyacinth Mendonca, popularly known as Ronnie Mendonca, took over from Subhash Malhotra as the 27th Commissioner of Police...

August 21: Ronald Hyacinth Mendonca, popularly known as Ronnie Mendonca, took over from Subhash Malhotra as the 27th Commissioner of Police of India8217;s most prestigious commissionerate, Mumbai, at 11.30 am today.

An additional director general of police, law and order, in the state headquarters, Mendonca steps into his predecessor8217;s shoes, at a time when the law and order situation is at an all time low, since the communal riots in 1992-93.

As per convention, Mendonca was expected to succeed Ramdeo Tyagi in December last year. However, political jugglery and Mendonca8217;s moralistic stance forced him to serve a tenure in the state police office. Belatedly though, Mendonca seems to be on a familiar turf, on a posting which he described as 8220;challenging8221; and 8220;another assignment8221;. He was at his diplomatic best while fielding questions from the press. He reserved his verdict on the law and order situation in the city. quot;I have just taken over, give me some time to take stock of the situation, only then can I comment,quot; he said.

Ironically, ex-CP Malhotra, even during his exit today, maintained that there was no breakdown of law and order in the city, while the home minister, Gopinath Munde, claimed that it was the need to restore law and order that forced him to replace the police chief. quot;Media and other vested interests are the result of my transfer,quot; said Malhotra.

Mendonca has always been a favourite of Munde, as was RD Tyagi with the Shiv Sena supremo, Bal Thackeray. Malhotra enjoyed the support of chief minister Manohar Joshi. In fact, the CM stalled the transfer till yesterday, since Munde8217;s recommendation on August 12. When queried on his political loyalties, Mendonca played safe, saying, 8220;I am everybody8217;s man. Rather I am a common man8217;s man.8221;

About his plans on launching a crackdown on city-based mafia, he said, 8220;We have adequate men and weaponry to tackle the underworld menace.8221; But he was quick to add, 8220;If individuals do not come to the police then how can we protect them?8221; An IPS officer of 1966 batch, Mendonca8217;s appointment was cheered by the city police force, from the deputy commissioners to the sub-inspectors.

Few of Mendonca8217;s peers can match his efficiency and integrity in the Maharashtra cadre. In fact, the Bombay High Court while transferring the Ramesh Kini murder case investigations to the Central Bureau of Investigations CBI, virtually gave him a certificate of 8220;integrity and efficiency8221;. He was the first officer to have summoned the blue-blooded Thackeray for an interrogation in the case. However, Mendonca, while heading the investigations into the Kini murder case grilled Raj Thackeray for three and a half hours at the CID office in Ballad Pier late last year. Although the investigations were not up to the satisfaction of the fourth estate, Mendonca8217;s reputation remained unscathed. When some politicians attempted mud-slinging, Mendonca found an army of supporters among common people and the same media that was baying for his blood.

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Besides two medals, including one President8217;s police medal, Mendonca has some of the most extraordinary qualities which were never acknowledged or commended by his political bosses.

Last year when the conflict about the disputed Haji Malang shrine, atop a mountain at Kalyan reached a crescendo spreading fear in the hearts of Thaneites, it was Mendonca, the Thane CP then, who took upon himself to dispel the fear from the hearts of the people with unbeatable chutzpah.

And this was not the first time, though. Way back in 1982 when he was a superintendent in Nagpur, he had challenged a Sikh terrorist who had drawn out a sword to intimidate the people at the station. A martial art expert himself, Mendonca disarmed and arrested the terrorist, and suffered minor injuries in the process.

The Mumbai police and the citizen are in a desparate need of such chutzpah. As Malhotra says, quot;I can say it on behalf of Ronnie that when he responds, he responds positively.quot;