Mumbai Police officials have started urging societies not to employ watchmen unless they are registered with a security agency or, if they are from Nepal, with the Nepali Pravasi Sangh. The move has been prompted by the difficulty in tracing watchmen who looted the houses they were guarding and then fled, many of them to Nepal.

“In my jurisdiction, there have been two major burglaries recently in which watchmen had themselves burgled houses and gone back to their homes in Nepal. There have been many other minor thefts in our jurisdiction involving thieves from Nepal. It is difficult for the police to trace such people as there is an extradition procedure to be followed, whereas they can enter Nepal without any fuss,” said senior inspector Surendra Jaiswal of Kandivali police station.

Inspector Deepak Phatangare (Crime) of the Malad police station added, “Every year, we have two or three cases where watchmen burgle houses and flee to Nepal. In some cases, we have apprehended them before they could leave; in some, they have managed to enter Nepal and are still absconding.”

“When people from states within the country are employed, one can provide the local police station with details. When the employee is from Nepal, this cannot be done as the Nepal police are not bound by our rules,” said another officer.

DCP Sanjay Bannerjee (Zone 11) clarified, “We are not against Nepalese being employed anywhere. We only urge societies to employ them through a genuine security agency or at least confirm whether the credentials of the watchman have been verified by the Nepali Sangh.”

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