ACP Vasant Dhoble, who is set to retire on May 31 speaks to mid-day about his 39-yr career, his pride in his achievements even though they attracted controversy and more in an exclusive interview
Vasant Dhoble (58), the hockey stick-wielding, six-foot tall ACP whose name made owners and patrons of the city’s restaurants and pubs quiver in fear barely three years ago, and probably still does, is set to retire from the Mumbai Police by the end of this month.
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And, in what seems rather anti-climactic, the man who had been endowed with the epithet ‘Public Enemy No 1’ by Pritish Nandy, had been the subject of a protest by a 1,000-strong crowd, who accused him of ‘Talibanising’ Mumbai, and had nearly 108 cases filed against him in the course of a controversial career, is going to spend his sunset years farming in his village.
Dhoble became one of the best-known figures in the Mumbai Police and earned the title of an anti-nightlife crusader when he began a series of raids on bars and restaurants in 2012. Pics/Shadab Khan
Catapulted to limelight
In 2012, Dhoble, who was heading the Social Service (SS) Branch, became one of the best-known figures in the Mumbai Police and earned the title of an anti-nightlife crusader when he began a series of raids on bars and restaurants.
His detractors accused him of throwing the rulebook, containing ancient rules, at bars and patrons and indulging in moral policing. He had even been accused of booking patrons of pubs for prostitution, a charge that he was later cleared of.
The cases had piled up so high that Dhoble told mid-day yesterday that he was happy he was getting to have a regular retirement rather than the forced one he always feared. For restaurant and bar owners, meanwhile, the image of the hockey stick-wielding Dhoble never failed to strike fear.
Known for keeping his cards close to his chest vis-a-vis raid locations and conducting the raids with just three or four constables, bar owners took to distributing his photos among their staffers to ensure they would be alert if he entered the premises. Bar owners had also hired a set of people to trail Dhoble to get a sense of possible raid locations.
The ACP, however, inevitably emerged the winner in this cat-and-mouse game by shaking off his tail. Recalling those days, Dhoble said, “One day, my boss, then police commissioner Arup Patnaik called me into his cabin. He ordered me to take over the Social Service Branch as ACP.
Since I had worked with him in the past, he was aware of my style of functioning. I knew that there was a lot that needed to be done in the SS branch. I asked him only one question, whether I would get freedom, and he replied, ‘Dhoble, do whatever is in the purview of the law and act only against what is illegal’. The rest is history.”
Household name
Within a few months, Dhoble became a household name in Mumbai. Newspapers printed a series of articles against him some in favour, many against. Whether Dhoble was ruining the city’s nightlife and ruining its image or cleaning it up became a hotly-debated topic and news channels also carried several bulletins on the police crackdown with Dhoble as a key figure.
No stranger to controversies (see box), Dhoble became the subject of many more following his surge in popularity and court cases began piling up one after another. “I was always ready for a court appearance. The white shirt and black trousers, which I usually wear, were kept ready and when I started raiding the bars, I was sued multiple times.
Thankfully I have been cleared of most of the charges against me,” he added. “I have served the force for 39 long years. During my tenure, I had never imagined that I would be able to serve the department till retirement.
Given the kind of publicity I got, the controversies that dogged me, and the powerful lobby that was conspiring against me, I had always feared I would be dismissed from my job. But, thankfully, truth has prevailed and I am leaving the force with dignity,” said the ACP.
Mighty fall
Dhoble’s retreat into the shadows was also as swift as his rise to virtual stardom, which lasted only till Arup Patnaik held the top cop’s post. When Patnaik was transferred following the 2012 Azad Maidan riots, Dr Satyapal Singh took over as the police chief, and Dhoble was transferred out of the SS branch soon after.
He was posted as the ACP of Vakola Division where he was in charge of just two police stations. Following a controversy involving a hawker’s death, he was shunted to the Missing Persons Bureau in September 2014, from where he will retire as ACP on May 31.
mid-day reports on Dhoble
'Bar-raider' cop attacks juice centre with hockey stick
Sex traders want to memorise ACP Vasant Dhoble's face
ACP Vasant Dhoble, RR Patil to get a dose of Gandhigiri
1,000 protest against 'the cop with the hockey stick'
Vasant Dhoble creates rift between Sena, BJP
Santacruz seniors honour 'Hero' Dhoble
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