In the alleged BHR scam, several people were "duped" by the "credit society" by luring 13 per cent interest on fixed deposits. PUNE CITY police Monday booked special public prosecutor Pravin Chavan and two others in alleged cheating and extortion case. According to police, the FIR has been lodged over a complaint by Suraj Sunil Zanwar, resident of Jalgaon, who is an accused in an alleged Bhaichand Hirachand Raisoni (BHR) State Cooperative Credit Society scam of over Rs 2,000 crores.
Suraj was arrested in January 2021, but was granted bail in May 2021. His father Sunil, another accused, arrested in August 2021, is behind bars. He has alleged that Pravin, who was appointed as the special public prosecutor (Special PP) in the case, and two other persons–Shekhar Sonalkar and Uday Pawar–demanded Rs 2 crores on assurances of helping his father secure bail.
Suraj further alleged that they threatened to frame him and his father in another case and book them under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act . Of Rs 2 crores, Suraj alleged, the accused had extorted Rs 1.22 crores from him. Of this, Pravin has kept Rs 1 crore while Uday took Rs 20 lakhs for being a mediator and Rs 2 lakhs as “hawala” charges.
The trio have been booked under IPC sections 166 (public servant disobeying law), 213 (taking gift, etc), 384 (punishment for extortion), 385 (fear of injury), 386 (fear of death), 388 (punishment with death or imprisonment for life), 120 b (criminal conspiracy), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention).
Pravin was also the Special PP in the graft case against former MLA Ramesh Kadam. In March 2022, the then Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis (now deputy chief minister) had presented purported video recordings before the Legislative Assembly Deputy Speaker alleging that a few persons, including Pravin and members of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, were conspiring “to frame BJP leaders” including MLA Girish Mahajan. Following the controversy, Chavan resigned from the BHR scam case and an inquiry was ordered against him.
In the alleged BHR scam, several people were “duped” by the “credit society” by luring 13 per cent interest on fixed deposits.