MUMBAI: A special holiday court on Tuesday remanded ex-Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh to the Enforcement Directorate’s custody till November 6, hours after his arrest following marathon questioning in connection with a money laundering case.
Special judge P B Jadhav passed the remand order after hearing the arguments of Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh appearing for the the central agency and senior advocate Vikram Chaudhari, Deshmukh’s counsel. The ED sought 14-day custody of the NCP leader but the court granted only five days. Deshmukh’s counsel argued that his client should not be sent to jail as he is a senior citizen with a dislocated shoulder that needs constant support. The ED said it has fresh evidence and needs custodial interrogation of Deshmukh for further probe.
Former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh had accused Deshmukh of running an extortion racket and setting a `100 crore monthly target for ex-cop Sachin Waze to collect from bars and restaurants. Following this explosive revelation, the Bombay High Court ordered a CBI investigation into it. Later, the ED started probing the money laundering angle in the case.
Meanwhile, the Benami wing of the income tax department on Tuesday attached properties worth over Rs 1,000 crore, allegedly linked to Maharasthra deputy CM Ajit Pawar. The attached assets include the Jarandeshwar sugar factory in Satara, a commercial building in Mumbai, a residential flat in Delhi, a resort in Goa besides land parcels at 27 locations in Maharashtra. However, Pawar said none of the properties attached by the tax department is in his name.