NCP leader Hasan Mushrif grilled for eight hours in money laundering probe

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday questioned former Maharashtra minister and NCP legislator Hasan Mushrif for around eight hours for recording his statement as part of its money laundering probe.

ED had on Tuesday summoned Mushrif for questioning in its money laundering probe into a 2022 case related to alleged irregularities in a Kolhapur-based sugar mill and a cheating case of February this year registered by Kolhapur police's Murgud Police Station.

After his questioning was over at around 8.40 pm, Mushrif told the media that he had cooperated in the probe, answering all the queries that were posed to him.

Mushrif was on Wednesday questioned only about the allegations against him in the Murgud police station's cheating case, not about the sugar mill case, according to him, accompanied by his lawyers, Mushrif arrived at the ED’s headquarter at around 12.30 pm.

Mushrif denies wrongdoing

According to sources, Mushrif denied of any wrongdoing on his part during the questioning. On Wednesday, he requested the ED to ensure that his statement gets recorded in audio-visual format via CCTV as per the Supreme Court 's guidelines and the provisions of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Mushrif had also requested for the presence of his lawyers within visible distance, not audible distance, when his statement gets recorded. NCP’s legislator from Kolhapur’s Kagal Assembly constituency, Mushrif had served as rural development minister in the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

The Bombay High Court had on Tuesday granted Mushrif an interim protection from coercive action in the case by the agency for two weeks.

His counsels had pointed out that the HC, on May 2, 2022, had stayed the special court order initiating criminal proceedings in the sugar mill case and that the ED action came after the HC on Friday had passed an interim order for no coercive action in the other case of cheating.