On Wednesday, the Mumbai Police detained Maharashtra BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis and other leaders of the party as they staged protests at the Azad Maidan demanding the resignation of State Minister Nawab Malik. The leaders addressed the protest at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan with the motto ‘Nawab Malik Hatao, Maharashtra Bachao’.
Mumbai police detain BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis and other leaders of the party as they were carrying out a protest march demanding the resignation of state minister Nawab Malik #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/EfEM3AytO7
— ANI (@ANI) March 9, 2022
According to the reports, Maharashtra BJP President Chandrakant Patil has also been detained by the Mumbai Police and the duo along with other BJP members were taken to the Yellow Gate Police Station. BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis confirmed his detention and said on social media that he and his colleagues had been detained by the MVA government. “At the Yellow Gate Police Station, Mumbai after MVA Government detained me and colleagues”, he tweeted.
At the Yellow Gate Police Station, #Mumbai after MVA Government detained me and colleagues. #NawabHataoDeshBachao #Mumbai #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/Nu6fiIfQkq
— Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) March 9, 2022
Former CM Devendra Fadnavis along with other BJP leaders staged protest in Mumbai demanding Nawab Malik’s resignation. “Mumbaikars are out on streets of Mumbai. They are angry, they are hurt. We demand Nawab Malik’s resignation! It’s clear Nawab Hatao Desh Bachao! MVA wake up!”, he tweeted. In the series of tweets further, he added that the party had no intentions to stop until Nawab Malik resigned from the Ministry.
Mumbaikars are out on streets of #Mumbai..
— Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) March 9, 2022
They are angry, they are hurt.
We demand #NawabMalik’s resignation!
It’s clear #NawabHataoDeshBachao !#MVA wake up! @BJP4Mumbai #BJP @BJP4Maha pic.twitter.com/btbNWmYh6f
“Nawab Malik’s connection with Dawood Ibrahim is shameful for Maharashtra. The state government is dedicated to terrorist and gangster Dawood Ibrahim. The govt is being sympathetic towards those who helped Dawood and his aides, convicted in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts”, he said in his address at the Azad Maidan today.
LIVE Speaking at @BJP4Mumbai’s massive protest #NawabHataoDeshBachao at Azad Maidan, Mumbai !#Mumbai #Maharashtra #AzadMaidan https://t.co/ZU4diU8EJt
— Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) March 9, 2022
As reported earlier, the ED arrested Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik for his alleged links with Dawood Ibrahim. The opposition parties in the state have been demanding Malik’s resignation since then.
The MVA govt and the National Congress Party (NCP) is supporting Malik and has no intentions to make him resign from the Ministry. On March 2, the NCP had toughened its stand in the case and cleared that Malik would continue to be the Minister.
Fadnavis had then condemned the decision to retain Nawab Malik as a minister in the govt and had opined that for the first time in Maharashtra, a minister was behind bars but his resignation hadn’t been taken. “This government is coming together to save people who keep relations with Dawood. That’s why we have started protests and we demand that his resignation be taken immediately,” he had reiterated.
For the first time in Maharashtra, a minister (Nawab Malik) is behind bars but his resignation hasn’t been taken. This is unexpected. He hasn’t been jailed for a small matter, he’s accused of dealing with family of Dawood Ibrahim: Devendra Fadnavis, LoP in Maharashtra Assembly pic.twitter.com/ZPZkIevJXa
— ANI (@ANI) March 3, 2022
Linkages between Nawab Malik and 993 Mumbai Blasts accused terrorist
The ‘Malik saga’ actually kicked off when the ED arrested NCP leader Nawab Malik in the case pertaining to a PMLA instance related to elements linked to Dawood Ibrahim and the underworld. There were reports saying that Malik was involved in the Hawala transfers operated by Dawood Ibrahim. NCP Chief Sharad Pawar had criticized the act and said that Malik was being deliberately arrested because he was a Muslim. “If there is a Muslim activist who is their opponent, it is their (BJP’s) habit to link his name to Dawood. When I was the CM of Maharashtra, they had tried to link my name with Dawood as well. This is an attempt to harass those who are speaking against the misuse of central agencies,” he had said.
On February 15, the ED had conducted multiple raids in South Mumbai in connection with a money laundering case against the underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his aides. Close to 9 places in Mumbai and 1 in Thane had been raided including the residences of Dawood Ibrahim’s late sister Haseena Parkar and brother Iqbal Kaskar.
The agency later took into custody Iqbal Kaskar on February 19 and presented him before the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court. Also, the National Investigation Agency had said that Dawood Ibrahim was planning to launch terror attacks in India and that he was transferring funds through Hawala channels to provide financial help to all those involved in a planned attack. Nawab Malik’s name appeared in the process of investigation after the intelligence inputs directed the agency to look into the Hawala transactions while probing a money laundering case against Ibrahim, Iqbal Mirchi, Chhota Shakeel, Parkar and Javed Chikna.
Earlier in November 2021 also, Fadnavis had stated that Malik and his family had bought land parcels from people linked with the underworld. The ED in the investigation process reportedly learned that Malik had actually purchased land worth Rs 3 crores in the year 2005 from Haseena Parkar at Rs 30 lakhs. The sale deed was deliberately made to look like the cost of the land was Rs 30 lakhs when the practical cost transacted was at Rs 85 lakhs. The market value of the land today is around Rs 300 crores, as per reports.
The case is under investigation by the ED who is tracing all the linkages of illegal money transfers, land purchases and involvement of NCP’s Nawab Malik in the Dawood Ibrahim case.
