Maharashtra govt appoints SIT to probe allegations of extortion against ED officials

Mumbai: Hours before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached properties of Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday, Maharashtra home minister Dilip Walse-Patil announced that a special investigation team (SIT) will probe the extortion allegations levelled by the Sena MP against Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials. Additional commissioner of police (crime branch) Viresh Prabhu will conduct the probe and submit the report, the home minister said.

Raut had recently alleged that some ED officials were involved in an extortion racket with one Jitendra Navlani, adding that they extorted over ₹100 crore from builders and corporate houses in Mumbai. A formal complaint was lodged with Mumbai police by Shiv Sena leader Arvind Bhosale. The letter by Bhosale to the police commissioner of Mumbai has stated “unknown personnel of the Enforcement Directorate of the western region”.

“Viresh Prabhu is heading the probe. The investigation will be completed in due course. The decision over the action to be taken will be taken after the report is submitted,” Walse-Patil said.

The decision of constituting the SIT for the probe was taken during the home minister’s meeting with chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday. The order too was immediately issued by the home department, according to the officials from Mantralaya.

BJP leader and former MP Kirit Somaiya said that they are not scared of any SIT. “We are clean and are not scared of any SIT. Let them form the number of SITs they want to. Uddhav Thackeray should not use the police force like the mafia to save their lieutenants. We condemn the misuse of the police force. The corruption by the ‘dirty dozens’ of Shiv Sena will come to the fore and even action will be taken against the money laundering by the people related to the Thackeray family,” he said.

Reacting to the ED action of attachment of properties belonging to Raut, Walse-Patil also attacked the central government for the action by the central agencies. “One can imagine how central government works. The Enforcement Directorate takes action without any prior notice or preliminary inquiry. It will, however, not affect the prospects of the state government. The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government will complete its term,” Walse-Patil said.