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Inspector Singh: the man who unravelled the betting scam

Josy Joseph in New Delhi

He hardly fits the bill of an ace crime-buster. He'll effortlessly pass off as yet another hard-working middle class man living in a non-descript apartment in pollution-stifled Delhi.

But behind the cool exterior lies a sharp mind, that sizes you up inch by inch. You could confirm this from the fallen cricket Hansie Cronje, or from the members of the betting syndicate who are now on the run.

Delhi's own Sherlock Holmes -- Inspector Ishwar Singh -- has a unique method to track down violators of law.

As the cricketing world struggles to weather the match-fixing storm, the most applauded - albeit largely unknown -- man in the Delhi police is trying to piece together the jigsaw puzzle of just another 'cheating case'.

Inspector Singh says the police has to file the chargesheet against the four accused within the next three months. By which time he would have switched over to next case, next culprit.

The ultimate outcome of the case is open, but Inspector Singh's network across the capital, and even outside, is awesome. In fact, a call from the state police to Inspector Singh after a kidnapping case in north India is now customary. Police officials of other states such as UP admit that Singh has a 'tremendous network' and a knack to unravel complicated cases.

"He is low profile, ever smiling, but sharp and quick," admits a sub-inspector working with him.

DCP PK Srivastav of the Crime Branch thinks Inspector Singh is a "team man, who has his own style in tracking down criminals."

Sitting in his first floor Crime Branch office in dusty South Delhi, Singh recollects his encounters with criminals and operators on the wild side over the past one decade.

It was Singh who exposed Romesh Sharma's links to Dawood Ibrahim. Sharma was arrested from his farmhouse, booked under 18 different cases, and continues to give stomach cramps to several of his political friends, including, it is said, some former prime ministers.

"The Romesh Sharma case was much more difficult than the betting case," admits Inspector Singh.

He also exposed the conspiracy by some militants jailed in Tihar Jail and their Pakistani contacts to organise a jail-break. Ultimately, the police seized 18 kg of RDX, AK 47s and several pistols from the terrorists, who were being directed from Pakistan by the Babbar Khalsa's Wadhwa Singh.

In October 1997, Inspector Singh led a posse into the Deer Park in posh Hauz Khas village, and engaged seven aides of don Babloo Srivastav in an encounter. As the city watched, Inspector Singh and his team overpowered all of them, and exposed a string of kidnappings they had planned in the city.

To Inspector Singh's credit, he has so far not erred in identifying his targets correctly. In fact, at least three of his colleagues are cooling their heels in Tihar jail for shooting down innocents, apparently on mistaking them to be underworld overlords. "We do analyse each case scientifically, and take a decision only after prolonged discussions. Even a slight slip can be dangerous," he says.

He is also credited with saving the lives of at least four children, including the relative of a Delhi legislator. Arpan Paliwal, then a 7th class student, was saved from a Haryana hideout after several raids.

Master Ashish, who was kidnapped from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, was saved by Inspector Singh, and handed over to a surprised UP police. While tracking underworld movements, Singh came across the case, and although he had nothing to do with it, rushed a party to Meerut, carried out an encounter and saved Master Ashish.

The inspector has been with the Crime Branch from 1992 onwards. Seniors and juniors come and go but he has remained in the anti-extortion cell.

"Maybe if you are good, your bosses would never let you go," he says, his characteristic smile creasing his face.

The man has the cellphone numbers of over 150 underworld dons in Pakistan, Dubai, Malaysia etc stored on his computer hard drive, and addresses of thousands of informers and numerous other details of each case that he has worked on.

Of course, it is not so easy to get him to talk about these things. "These are our trade secrets," says the man who twice failed to qualify for the National Defence Academy. "Army was my dream career," he admits; Singh's cousin, incidentally, is a major general in the army.

As the betting scandal continues to grab the headlines, Inspector Singh, a cricket fan himself, has only one desire: "Indians should have the courage to admit, like Cronje, if they are involved." He wouldn't elaborate beyond this.

That tantalisingly incomplete statement could be a clue to some. Maybe even a warning to some.

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