MUMBAI: Former Chief of Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) Himanshu Roy, who had also handled several high-profile cases while serving in various capacities in the state police department, killed himself on Friday at his Nariman Point residence.
In the afternoon his staff rushed to his room after hearing a gunshot and found him in pool of blood. He shot himself in mouth with a private revolver. He was immediately rushed to the Bombay Hospital where he was declared dead at around 1.50 pm.
His body was the taken to the Gokuldas Tejpal Hospital for postmortem. The exact reason of death would be ascertained after the autopsy, officials said.
Mumbai police team that investigated his residence after the incident has found a suicide note that reportedly mentioned that no one is responsible for his death.
Born on June 23, 1963, Roy worked as the Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) in Mumbai. In 2016 he was appointed as Additional Director General (Establishment). An IPS officer of the 1988 Maharashtra cadre Roy had handled several high profile cases throughout his career.
Roy was an alumnus of St. Xavier’s College, in Mumbai. He would have been 55 next month. He is survived by his mother and wife.
The 1988-batch Indian Police Service officer was suffering from bone-marrow cancer from last three years. The ailment too was detected accidently. He had a fall from a horse and inflicted injuries on his leg. When the injuries took too long to heal, doctors conducted several tests and the bone-marrow cancer was detected.
The burly and imposing police officer underwent treatment for the ailment in Mumbai, Pune and abroad for past three years. According to sources close to him, he had recovered and had even joined gym. He was hoping to rejoin the duty after a long medical leave that is when the cancer relapsed. This might have pushed him into severe depression forcing him to end life, the sources said.
According to former Mumbai top cop Arup Pattnaik, who visited him barely three months back, Roy had complained to him about the pain he had bare due to the ailment.
Former Mumbai police commissioner M N Singh termed him a courageous and hardworking officer.
“He was suffering from cancer but he was fighting it. It is very unfortunate that he had to end his life like this,” Singh told reporters after visiting Roy’s family to express his condolences.
Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit remembered Roy as the “Dabang” of Mumbai police. “#HimanshuRoy you were the #Dabang of @MumbaiPolice... the news of your suicide is heart breaking. U gave strength and confidence to the city of #Mumbai in your lifetime. Mumbai will miss you forever...may you find peace in your second innings and be the Dabang that u always were. (sic)” Pandit said in his tweet.
Public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam remembered Roy as a man who never hurt anyone. “He was a jovial person. He was firmly rooted to ground even while working on high posts. He used to treat everyone – from sundry to the top bosses – with dignity. He also never kept anyone waiting. He was a fitness freak and also used to advise people on fitness,” Nikam said.
Roy was instrumental in maintaining secrecy when Pakistani terrorist, involved in 26/11 attacks in Mumbai, Ajmal Kasab was shifted to Yeravada jail in Pune and hanged, Nikam said.
Other high-profile cases handled by Roy include Journalist J Dey murder case and the IPL spot fixing case. During 2013 Indian Premier League spot-fixing and betting case, Roy arrested Bollywood actor Vindu Dara Singh for alleged links with bookies. During his tenure as ATS chief, software engineer Anees Ansari was arrested for allegedly planning to blow up the American school at the Bandra Kurla complex.