Anil Deshmukh mentions Sachin Waze's denial in fresh bail plea

While testifying before the Chandiwal Commission, Waze made a U-turn and denied his alleged claims in his statement to the ED.

Team Newsable

Mumbai, First Published Jan 29, 2022, 2:56 PM IST | Last Updated Jan 29, 2022, 3:36 PM IST

Former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh has filed a new bail plea citing the statements given by the dismissed Mumbai police officer Sachin Waze before Justice KU Chandiwal's inquiry commission, in which he denied collecting money for the Nationalist Congress Party leader or handing any cash to his office staff.

Last year in May, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) registered a money-laundering case against National Congress Party (NCP) leader Anil Deshmukh based on an FIR of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) dated April 21, 2021, based on allegations of corruption filed by former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh.

In the letter written to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on March 20, 2021, Singh alleged that Deshmukh directed certain Mumbai Police officers to collect an amount of Rs 100 crore every month from Mumbai's restaurants and bars.

On Deshmukh's instruction, Waze collected Rs 4.7 crore from the owners of the bars in Mumbai to avoid public interference between December 2020 and February 2021, claimed ED.

Also Read: Former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh being quizzed by CBI over corruption allegations

Waze, in the statement to ED, revealed that he has handed over the 'extorted money in two installments to Deshmukh's aide Kundan Shinde'. Later, the agency said, the Deshmukh's son Hrishikesh received an amount of Rs 4.18 crore routed through Delhi-based agents as donations to a Deshmukh-led charitable trust, Shri Sai Shikshan Sanstha, Nagpur. However, while testifying before the Chandiwal Commission, which the Maharashtra government established to examine Singh's allegations, Waze made a U-turn and denied the claims he allegedly made in his statements to the ED.

In this backdrop, Deshmukh argued that Waze's statements were 'unreliable and had no creditworthiness whatsoever.' In the plea, Dekshmukh said, 'The statements made by Waze are wholly 'unreliable' and have no creditworthiness.' 'Waze's credibility is seriously questioned because he changed his statement before the Chandiwal Commission and claimed that he never met Deshmukh or handed him any money up to this point.' Waze is the subject of several legal proceedings. ACP Sanjay Patil, whose message the agency relied on to claim that Deshmukh was demanding money from bar owners, told the commission that he was forced to revert to his message by Singh. According to various statements, the 'Number 1' for whom money was collected from bar owners by Waze was Singh, not him.'

Deshmukh also claimed that Param Bir Singh, who made allegations against him, is 'the actual mastermind of the Antilia explosives scare case whose name has been taken by a cyber-expert working for Mumbai police for creating a fake threat note, has himself submitted purses before the Commission stating that all allegations were based on HEARSAY.'

Also Read: Ambani bomb scare case: NIA court sends Sachin Vaze to judicial custody

Param Bir Singh, too, had confessed before the commission that all his allegations against the Deshmukh were based on hearsay. Special PMLA judge Rahul Rokade has asked the ED to file a reply to the bail petition of the Deshmukh filed through advocate Inderpal Singh and posted the matter for hearing on February 4.

In his fresh plea, Deshmukh has said, "he is the victim of the gross persecution and harassment being meted out at the hands of certain unscrupulous vested interests for blatantly mala fide considerations. The instant case reflects shocking abuse of power and authority by the concerned officials who have virtually unleashed a reign of terror by subverting the process of law."

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