Veteran Mumbai cop Daya Nayak, better known as an "encounter specialist" of the 1990s, was promoted to assistant commissioner of police (ACP) rank on Tuesday—two days before his July 31 retirement date. Nayak is currently in charge of Unit 9 of the city crime branch.
The promotion accompanies three other top inspectors—Jeevan Kharat, Deepak Dalvi, and Pandurang Pawar—who are retiring on Thursday as well. All four were promoted as part of a recent police authority decision.
Nayak started his service in 1995 as a sub-inspector at Juhu police station and soon gained prominence following his involvement in several gun battles against underworld personalities. He has the distinction of eliminating 87 criminals throughout his career, some of whom were associated with infamous ganglords like Dawood Ibrahim, Chhota Rajan, Amar Naik, and Arun Gawli. His work and life saw several Bollywood films based on him, including Ab Tak Chhappan and Department.
His career, though, was dogged by controversy. In 2006, he was suspended after being arrested by the Anti-Corruption Bureau on charges of alleged unaccounted assets on the basis of complaints made by former journalist Ketan Tirodkar. The Supreme Court subsequently acquitted him of the charges, and Nayak was reinstated in 2012.
Over the past few years, Nayak was in the midst of prominent investigations. His work includes investigating a shooting attack near actor Salman Khan's home, NCP leader Baba Siddique's murder, and an assault case against actor Saif Ali Khan. He was also instrumental in cracking the 2021 Antilia bomb threat and its related businessman murder case of Mansukh Hiren.
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