On Wednesday, 13th November, Justice Kailash Chandiwal made several explosive revelations regarding the investigation of the ‘2021 Rs 100 crore Vasooli case’ involving former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, API Sachin Vaze, and IPS Parambir Singh. In an exclusive interview with ABP Maza, he clarified that no clean chit was granted to the former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, refuting any claims of exoneration. He stated that while authorities had access to substantial evidence, they failed to present it before the Commission, otherwise, the outcome might have been different.
Former Police Commissioner Parambir Singh had accused then-Home Minister Anil Deshmukh of orchestrating a Rs 100 crore extortion scheme. Justice Chandiwal stated that several attempts to implicate BJP’s Devendra Fadanvis were also made by Sachin Vaze and Anil Deshmukh, but the Commission did not take these allegations on record, recognizing them as publicity-driven moves.
Justice Chandiwal on Anil Deshmukh | अनिल देशमुखांना अहवालात क्लीनचिट नाही, चांदीवालांचा गौप्यस्फोट#justicechandiwal #vidhansabhaelection2024 #ABPMajha #Marathinews #vidhansabhaelection2024 #anildeshmukh pic.twitter.com/D9C7COOVRC
— ABP माझा (@abpmajhatv) November 13, 2024
He emphasized that certain individuals appeared to be seeking fame by dragging prominent political figures into the matter, but he did not allow this tactic to influence the investigation. He said that during the inquiry Sachin Vaze had shown a message by Salil Deshmukh, son of Anil Deshmukh mentioning Rs 40 lakh. “Vaze had a lot of material. But he often disregarded his lawyers’ guidance and displayed a calculated, clever demeanor,” he said.
Several media reports in the year 2022 reported that the Justice KU Chandiwal Commission had given a clean chit to former home minister Anil Deshmukh in a report submitted to the then-CM Uddhav Thackeray. The reports then mentioned that the Commission had called the Indian Police Services (IPS) officer, Parambir Singh’s allegation of corruption and extortion false.
However, Justice Chandiwal said that his report nowhere made the mention of clean chit and indicated that a different outcome might have been possible had the evidence been produced.
The retired Bombay High Court judge was appointed on March 30, 2021, to lead a single-member inquiry after Parambir Singh wrote a letter to the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, Chief Secretary, and other authorities alleging that the then-Home Minister Anil Deshmukh operated an extortion scheme. He said that Deshmukh directed police officers to collect Rs 100 crore monthly from bars, restaurants, and other establishments.
The Chandiwal Commission was tasked with investigating three key issues which involved whether Singh provided any evidence in his March 20, 2021 letter to substantiate claims of misconduct or offenses by Deshmukh or his office; whether Singh’s allegations, which referenced messages from Assistant Commissioner of Police Sanjay Patil and Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze, held any truth; and whether these claims warranted an investigation by the Anti-Corruption Bureau or any other agency.
The Commission examined several individuals, including Deshmukh, Singh, NCP leader Nawab Malik, and Vaze, one of the officers allegedly involved in Deshmukh’s alleged scheme, as per Singh’s claims. More details regarding the case can be read here.
