The State Home department has reinstated Police Inspector Ashish Shirodkar, Police Sub-Inspector Punaji Gawas and five other constables who were suspended and arrested after a foreign model exposed their links with Israeli drug lord Yaniv Benaim alias Atala.
Foreign model Lucky Amori Farmhouse had conducted a sting operation on her own fiance Atala exposing the nexus between police officials in the state run Anti Narcotics Cell (ANC) and drug peddlers.
Atala was shown admitting that he was purchasing narcotics from the police officers, and had named Ashish (Shirodkar) on the tape.
The Crime branch which was investigating the case had handed it over to CBI which is probing all the officers who were reinstated today.
As per the order issued by the Home Department all the seven policemen including head constable Husain Sheikh and constables Sahesh Pokle, Sanjay Parab, R S Kankonkar and Sandeep Parab were posted to Goa Reserve Police (GRP).
All the officials are hereby reinstated into service from suspension with immediate effect, without prejudice to any ongoing action against them, says the order signed by Deputy Inspector General of Police V Renganathan.