On Saturday, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested two close aides of former Maharashtra Home Minister and NCP leader Anil Deshmukh in connection with the Rs.100 crore extortion and money laundering case.
According to the reports, the two aides – Sanjeev Palande, Deshmukh’s personal secretary and personal assistant Kundan Shinde were arrested under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after about nine hours of intense questioning.
The Enforcement Directorate said the two men were arrested as they failed to cooperate with the investigative agency in the ongoing probe against Anil Deshmukh in the money laundering case. The ED officials are expected to produce the two aides at a special PMLA court in Mumbai later in the day to seek their custody for custodial interrogation.
The arrests came after the central probe agency conducted raids at Anil Deshmukh’s residence in Nagpur and Mumbai on Friday. The raids were conducted at five places, according to the ED. Reportedly, the officers had raided the offices of Deshmukh, one in Mumbai and another in Nagpur.
ED carried out raids after establishing a money trail of Rs 4 crore extortion money
Around eight ED officials reached Deshmukh’s residence at 7.30 PM on Friday along with a team of Central Reserve Police Force personnel and began the search. The ED officials barred anyone from entering or exiting the residence as they continued their search.
The ED had raided the residence of Anil Deshmukh after establishing a money trail of Rs 4 crore, allegedly paid by about 10 bar owners in Mumbai to the then Home Minister Deshmukh over three months. Based on the new evidence, the ED had carried out searches at these locations, including Deshmukh’s residence and the premises of his personal assistant Kundan Shinde and personal secretary Sanjeev Palande.
Earlier on May 11, the Enforcement Directorate had registered a case of money laundering against the former Home Minister of Maharashtra Anil Deshmukh.
Anil Deshmukh resigned as Maharashtra Home Minister in April after the Bombay High Court ordered a CBI probe into Rs 100 crore bribery allegations levelled by former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh against the NCP leader.
