Hours after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of a Mumbai 'chawl', Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said that he is proud of Raut and called him a 'true Shiv Sainik'.
Uddhav Thackeray spoke on Raut's arrest during a press conference at his residence Matoshree. Speaking to the media, Thackeray said that the dissenting voices are being repressed.
He slammed BJP President JP Nadda and the party saying that the saffron party is trying to homogenise India and is using strength to do so."
"Using CBI, ED and other agencies to repress dissent is not democracy," Thackeray said further.
The former Maharashtra chief minister also likened the BJP leader to 'Hitler'.
Before his presser, Uddhav Thackeray, in a warm gesture, ay called on the family of Sanjay Raut and offered solace to them.
Thackeray, accompanied by Lok Sabha MP Arvind Sawant and other senior party leaders met Raut's aged mother, wife Varsha, daughter and other family members at their home in 'Maitri' bungalow in Bhandup.
Raut's mother became emotional and held onto Thackeray, expressing silent concerns for her son who was arrested by the ED early this morning in an alleged money-laundering case arising out of the Patra Chawl, Goregaon, land scam.
Thackeray spoke with Raut's mother, wife and his daughter, who were rendered speechless as he was whisked off in detention by the ED and police teams on Sunday evening, and attempted to offer solace to them after the sudden developments since Sunday dawn.
On Sunday morning, an ED team raided the Raut household and questioned the MP for over nine hours.
Then he was detained and taken to the ED office where he was grilled for another over seven hours and finally arrested on Monday morning.
The arrest has been strongly condemned by the Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party, Congress and other opposition leaders.
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