On Thursday, Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil said the state government was seeking IPS officer Param Bir Singh and that his departure would be a “bad thing.” Patil was responding to claims that Singh had departed the country, which had been reported by investigative agencies.

Talking to reporters after an event in South Mumbai, Patil said, “We are looking for his whereabouts.” When asked whether Singh has left the country, Patil said, “I have heard something like that but as a government servant, he cannot leave the country without informing us. We have issued a Lookout Circular (LOC) and if he went away, it is not good.”

The CID has been looking for Singh in order to execute the bailable warrant issued against him by the KU Chandiwal commission after Singh did not appear before it after repeated summons.

The Commission was asked to investigate allegations of corruption made by Singh against former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh. Additionally, there are five FIRs registered against Singh in Maharashtra while the Anti Corruption Bureau is conducting two open enquiries against him. Apart from the state police, the NIA, investigating the Ambani terror scare case, had issued summons to Singh but he could not be reached.

Singh had gone on leave from his positing as DG Home Guards on May 7 citing health concerns. He left for Chandigarh from Mumbai and extended his leave citing poor health. He was shunted out as the Mumbai Police Commissioner after the Ambani terror scare case earlier this year.