Maharashtra: Anil Deshmukh fails to appear before ED for third time

MUMBAI: Maharashtra’s former home minister Anil Deshmukh failed, for the third time, to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday. He sent a letter through his lawyer informing the ED that he cannot be present for questioning till the Supreme Court decides on his petition urging against any coercive action.
The ED decided to challenge Deshmukh’s petition in court. Deshmukh’s son Hrishikesh has been summoned on Tuesday. On Monday, the ED rejected Deshmukh’s letter as there was a box-type mark below Deshmukh’s signature, and the ED officials believed that it was photoshopped, said ED sources. They further added that Deshmukh is not traceable for his statement and his phone is also switched off. Two separate ED teams had visited his two known residences in Mumbai on Friday night, but the former minister was not traceable. Deshmukh’s lawyer Inderpal Singh declined to comment.
Last Tuesday, Deshmukh wrote a letter to the ED, asking it to record his statement through video-conferencing. The ED has rejected the request after stating that it was neither feasible nor tenable and alleged that Deshmukh adopted a dilatory tactic. In Monday’s letter, Deshmukh reportedly stated that the ED’s objections “are not only misconceived but also reflect a prejudicial bent of mind.” The letter asked ED to “wait for the outcome of the proceedings before the Court for the next few days”, which the agency said is diametrically opposite to what he has been maintaining, where he asked for details of the case and insisted that he was not avoiding the investigation.
Last month, the ED had arrested Deshmukh’s private secretary (additional collector rank government officer) Sanjeev Palande and personal assistant Kundan Shinde for helping Deshmukh and Hrishikesh with the money laundering. Palande and Shinde are in ED custody till July 6.
The ED is investigating a money laundering case against Deshmukh based on the allegation of the former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh in his letter to the chief minister. Singh had alleged that Deshmukh had demanded Rs 100 crore every month from (now-dismissed) assistant police inspector Sachin Waze and two other officers after asking them to collect it illegally from orchestra bars in the city and other sources.