The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued third summons to former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh for recording his statement in connection with a money laundering case, as he did not turn up in person earlier.
Mr. Deshmukh has been asked to join the probe on July 5. In a letter submitted through his lawyer, he sought a copy of the case registered by the ED and asked it to record his statement through “any audio/visual mode of interaction”.
Mr. Deshmukh said he was 72 years of age, suffering from various comorbidities and, therefore, was vulnerable to COVID-19.
In the same case, the ED has arrested Kundan Sambhaj Shinde, the then personal assistant of Mr. Deshmukh, and his then personal secretary, Sanjeev Suryakant Palande, for their alleged involvement in money laundering. It informed the court that it had identified 11 companies directly controlled by Mr. Deshmukh’s family members and 13 others that are in the name of their close associates.
Money collection
The ED has recorded the statements of some bar owners/managers who purportedly disclosed about a meeting with Sachin Waze, the then head of Crime Intelligence Unit of the Mumbai police, for money collection. It is alleged that from December last till February, Mr. Waze had collected ₹4.70 crore from bar owners/managers.
In a statement to the ED, Mr. Waze has also alleged that he was getting direct instructions from Mr. Deshmukh, then State Home Minister, in several police investigations. He had been given a list of bar and restaurant owners for collecting ₹3 lakh a month from each one, as alleged. Mr. Waze alleged that he had handed over the cash to Mr. Shinde in two instalments.
The ED is also probing the role of a Nagpur-based trust, which had received ₹4.18 crore through various Delhi-based “paper” companies.