Former Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey Joins Congress Ahead of Maharashtra Assembly Elections
Mumbai, 20th September 2024: Former Mumbai police commissioner Sanjay Pandey, who was arrested in 2022 in connection with the NSE co-location case, officially joined the Congress party on Thursday ahead of Maharashtra’s upcoming assembly elections. Pandey was welcomed into the party by Mumbai Congress chief and Lok Sabha MP Varsha Gaikwad during an event at the party’s office in south Mumbai.
Pandey, a retired IPS officer who briefly held the position of acting Maharashtra director general of police, emphasized his commitment to secular values, stating that the Congress is the only political party that adheres to a truly secular ideology.
“I feel like I’m joining a family, not just a political party. I had wanted to become part of the Congress as early as 2004, but circumstances didn’t allow it,” Pandey remarked as he began his new political journey.
He expressed optimism about the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition’s prospects in the upcoming elections, predicting their return to power. Pandey assured that under their leadership, ordinary citizens would not live in fear.
Speaking from his experience as a former police commissioner, he also addressed the legal troubles he faced, alleging that false charges were filed against him.
Pandey, who retired from the Indian Police Service in 1986, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in 2022 for alleged involvement in a money laundering case tied to the unlawful phone tapping of National Stock Exchange (NSE) employees. The investigation involved a company he had founded. He was later released on bail.
During his tenure as acting DGP and later as Mumbai police commissioner, Pandey served under the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeray. At the time, the BJP, then in opposition, accused him of collaborating with the MVA to falsely implicate its leaders in criminal cases.
