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Age: 54 Years Hometown: Nagpur, Maharashtra Death Date: 27/11/2008
| Bio/Wiki | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Hemant Kamlakar Karkare [1]Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy |
| Profession | The Anti-Terrorist Chief |
| Known As | One of the Martyrs of 26/11 Mumbai Attack |
| Civil Services | |
| Service | Indian Police Service (IPS) |
| Batch | 1982 batch (35RR) |
| Cadre | Maharashtra [2]India Today |
| Major Designation(s) | Hemant Karkare joined the IPS in 1982, and he held many key posts in his 25 years long career. [3]Mint
• Superintendent of Police (1991) [4]The Indian Express |
| Awards, Honours | • 26 January 2009: Posthumously given India’s highest peacetime gallantry decoration – Ashoka Chakra • December 1983: The Best Cadet Trophy at the National Police Academy, Hyderabad [7]Rediff • Received the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service from then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee [8]Rediff |
| Personal Life | |
| Date of Birth | 12 December 1954 (Sunday) |
| Birthplace | Sagar, Madhya Pradesh [9]DNA |
| Date of Death | 27 November 2008 |
| Place of Death | Died on the way to hospital after being shot by the terrorists in the 26/11 attacks |
| Age (at the time of death) | 54 Years |
| Death Cause | Gunned down by the terrorists in 26/11 Mumbai attack [10]News 18 |
| Zodiac sign | Sagittarius |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Hometown | Nagpur, Maharashtra |
| School | • Chittranjan Das Municipal Primary School, Maharashtra [11]DNA • New English High School, Nagpur [12]DNA |
| College/University | Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, Nagpur [13]Hindustan Times |
| Educational Qualification | Bachelor of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering from Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (1975) [14]Hindustan Times |
| Religion/Religious Views | Hinduism [15]Rediff |
| Relationships & More | |
| Marital Status (at the time of death) | Married |
| Family | |
| Wife/Spouse | Kavita Karkare |
| Children | Son– 1 • Akash Karkare Daughter– 2 • Jui Karkare Navare • Sayali Karkare |
| Parents | Father– Kamlakar Karkare (Worked as a guard in the Central Railways) [16]DNA Mother– Kumudini Karkare (Worked as a teacher at D Dinanath School in Nagpur) [17]DNA |
| Siblings | Brother– 2 (younger) [18]Rediff • Shirish Karkare (Worked as a manager at the National Insurance Company) [19]Rediff [20]The Times of India • Pravin Karkare Sister– None |
Some Lesser Known Facts About Hemant Karkare
- Hemant Karkare, the martyr of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, was the Chief of Mumbai’s Anti-Terror Squad (ATS).
- According to his daughter Jui Karkare Navare, Hemant, as a child, was captivated by reading books so much that he once got locked in a library named Ramkrishna Math Library in Nagpur as no one observed a child reading a book in the big library. [21]Rediff
- In an interview, Jui Karkare Navare revealed that her father, Hemant Karkare, loved being creative throughout his life and enjoyed wood cravings. [22]Rediff
- Reportedly, Hemant worked at National Productivity Council and Hindustan Lever Limited (now Hindustan Unilever Limited) after completing his graduation in Mechanical Engineering, and later decided to appear for the civil services examination. [23]DNA
- According to the sources, after joining the Indian Police Services in 1982, Hemant Karkare served in the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) for nine years [24]India Today out of which he was assigned the Indian mission in Vienna, Austria, as a counsellor for seven years. [25]The Indian Express
- Reportedly, Hemant Karkare’s first assignment as assistant superintendent of police was in Bhusawal, a city in Northern Maharashtra, in 1984. [26]India Today
- In an interview, Former Research and Analysis Wing chief AS Dulat shared a story when the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) was trying to find information about the hijackers of the Indian Airlines flight IC 814, flying from Kathmandu, Nepal, and Hemant Karkare, then the commissioner from Mumbai provided the information to the RAW. [27]Scroll.in AS Dulat said,
The breakthrough came from Mumbai when one of our officers, working continuously without a break for days, found a major link. He found a man who had worked with the hijackers to fund and execute the plot and that suddenly opened up an intelligence treasure trove for us. The man was our intelligence commissioner in Mumbai, Hemant Karkare.” [28]Scroll.in
- Reportedly, while working with the United Nations on many assignments, Hemant Karkare did a separate six-year-stint at the cabinet secretariat in the Prime Minister’s Office. [29]Mint
- Hemant Karkare is remembered for his excellency in solving various cases including the blast cases in Thane, Vashi, and Panvel.
- According to Hemant’s daughter Jui Karkare Navare, her father got an urgent call around 09:45 pm, while he was having dinner with his family, about the firing at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, in south Mumbai. [30]Rediff According to the sources, when Karkare reached the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, he found platform number 01 empty. Reportedly, the targets of the 26/11 attacks included Chabad House, Rang Bhavan Lane near Cama Hospital, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Cafe Leopold, etc. [31]India Today
- After learning about the situation near the Cama & Albless hospital, Hemant, along with two officers – Additional Commissioner of Mumbai police Ashok Kamte and encounter specialist inspector Vijay Salaskar – and a constable, headed towards the location. Reportedly, Hemant – wearing a bulletproof jacket that could only resist 9 mm bullets and a service pistol – [32]Rediff asked for reinforcements till around forty minutes but didn’t get them. [33]NDTV As per the reports, Karkare with Ashok Kamte and Vijay Salaskar was gunned down by one of the terrorists near the Cama & Albless hospital; however, some sources claimed that Karkare and others were shot dead by Ajmal Masab with his AK-47.
Flowers and wreaths at the spot where Hemant Karkare, along with others, was shot
- Reportedly, Hemant’s last words were at 11:28 pm on 26 November 2008, instructing to control the situation near Cama Hospital and requesting to send the army to the place for backup. Hemant’s last words were,
ATS and QRT teams are here at the rear gate of the hospital, and so is the crime branch team. Therefore, we need a team from the front side. We need to ENCIRCLE the Cama and surround it.” [34]The Indian Express
- Reportedly, Sadhvi Pragya – one of the key accused of the Malegaon blasts case – delivered a controversial statement on Karkare’s death calling it a result of his bad deeds (karma). While talking about Karkare’s death in an interview, Sadhvi Pragya said,
Hemant Karkare falsely implicated me [in Malegaon blasts] and treated me very badly. I told him your entire dynasty will be erased. He died of his karma.” [35]India Today
- In memory of her father, Hemant Karkare, Jui Karkare Navare wrote a memoir titled ‘Hemant Karkare – A Daughter’s Memoir’ (2019). In an interview, she talked about it and said that she was able to put herself together as she was writing down feelings about her father’s loss and sharing some moments she spent with him. [36]Rediff
Jui Navare Karkare holding the ‘Hemant Karkare – A Daughter’s Memoir’
References/Sources:[+]
| ↑1 | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy |
|---|---|
| ↑2, ↑24, ↑26 | India Today |
| ↑3, ↑5, ↑6, ↑29 | Mint |
| ↑4 | The Indian Express |
| ↑7, ↑8, ↑15, ↑21, ↑22, ↑30, ↑32, ↑36 | Rediff |
| ↑9, ↑11, ↑12, ↑16, ↑17, ↑23 | DNA |
| ↑10 | News 18 |
| ↑13, ↑14 | Hindustan Times |
| ↑18 | Rediff |
| ↑19 | Rediff |
| ↑20 | The Times of India |
| ↑25 | The Indian Express |
| ↑27, ↑28 | Scroll.in |
| ↑31 | India Today |
| ↑33 | NDTV |
| ↑34 | The Indian Express |
| ↑35 | India Today |