Mumbai: A team of Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials conducted a search early on Friday morning at the Nagpur and Mumbai residences of former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh in connection with their money laundering probe.
The moves comes a day after ED recorded the statement of Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Raju Bhujbal in the case, who is presently the in-charge of the enforcement wing of Mumbai Police and has the social service branch under his jurisdiction. The social service branch conducts checks and raids on pubs, hookah parlours, dance bars, bars, and restaurants.
Earlier this month the agency officials had conducted searches at the premises of Nagpur businessman and two chartered accountants in connection with the case.
Last month ED had recorded statement of advocate Jayshri Patil who had earlier filed a PIL in the High Court seeking a CBI probe against Deshmukh. The central probe agency, on May 11, had registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) in Mumbai against Deshmukh based on the FIR filed by the CBI.
The Bombay High Court on April 5 had ordered the CBI to conduct a preliminary enquiry into the allegations levelled against Deshmukh, and to submit a report within 15 days. The CBI had, on April 24, registered an FIR against Deshmukh and others under corruption charges.
In March, former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, in his letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, had alleged that, Home Minister Deshmukh had told Sachin Waze that he had a target to accumulate Rs 100 crores a month from bars, restaurants and other establishments in Mumbai.
Later Param Bir Singh had moved the Supreme Court seeking a CBI probe, but the court had asked him to move the Bombay High Court, which dismissed his petition. But it ordered an inquiry into the PIL filed by Patil.
CBI had registered a preliminary enquiry the next day, and had recorded the statements of Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Enforcement) Raju Bhujbal, ACP Sanjay Patil and Waze in connection with the allegations, Jayshri Patil.
The CBI had also recorded statements of Deshmukh, his two personal assistants, a Kandivali bar owner and two drivers of Waze
