Cops on lookout for gangsters at Navratri mandals

MUMBAI: The police have made elaborate security arrangements to ensure no untoward incidents take place during the nine-day Navratri festivities in the city.

MUMBAI: The police have made elaborate security arrangements to ensure no untoward incidents take place during the nine-day Navratri festivities in the city.

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The police commissioner’s office has asked the men in uniform to keep a lookout, especially for gangsters, including extradited Kumar Pillai, Ashwin Naik and Arun Gawli.

“The reason for monitoring the gangsters is to keep a close eye on their activities considering Chhota Rajan has been extradited, and so has Kumar Pillai,” said a senior police officer, requesting anonymity.

The order also seeks a report on Navratri mandals that film stars attend, and those conducted by politicians. The police has also appealed to the public to report any suspicious events.

Deven Bharti, joint commissioner of police, said, “Officers in plain clothes will keep a watch on each mandal, especially the ones that celebrities visit.”

All the deputy commissioners of police have been asked to monitor their respective zones, and prepare a detailed report of each of the mandals that are organising the festivities in their jurisdiction, said police sources. Each of the mandals have been asked to provide details on the approximate number of people expected at their location and immersions.

The police have also been asked to collect details of any other religious establishments close to the Navratri mandals, to keep a check on any kind of communal disharmony. They have also been asked to keep a close watch of the entry and exit points of big Navratri mandals.

Officials said that anti-terror cells have been formed that will continue with their work of gathering inputs from their jurisdiction.