Nationalist Congress Party leader Anil Deshmukh on Monday appeared before the Enforcement in a money laundering case after skipping summons from the agency multiple times.
The Enforcement Directorate will record his statements in a case of alleged extortion registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
Former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh had publicly accused the Nationalist Congress Party leader in March of coercing police officers to extort money on his behalf from the owners of bars and restaurants in the city.
Deshmukh repeatedly denied the accusations but resigned from the state Cabinet on April 5 after the Bombay High Court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to conduct a preliminary inquiry against him.
The Enforcement Directorate had five summons to the former minister till August 18, but he did not appear for questioning before the agency.
On Monday, Deshmukh said that it had been wrongly reported in the media that he was not cooperating with the Enforcement Directorate.
On October 29, the High Court had rejected his plea to cancel the summons against him. The High Court had also said that it would not stop the central agency from arresting him.
In his video released on Monday, Deshmukh said that when the Enforcement Directorate raided his house and other establishments, his family and staff cooperated with the officials.
“Even today, my case is pending in the Supreme Court,” he said. “But the verdict of the case will take time. So today [Monday], I have come before the Enforcement Directorate myself.”
The Nationalist Congress Party leader also asked about the whereabouts of the former Mumbai police chief. The location of Singh, who is an accused in multiple other cases, has been unknown. There is speculation that he might have fled India.
Deshmukh pointed out that Singh accused the politician of extortion when he was transferred from the post of Mumbai police chief. He claimed that suspended police officer Sachin Vaze had levelled extortion charges after Singh told him to do so.
“I am sad that the kind of charges Singh and Waze have levelled against him have initiated inquiries from the CBI [Central Bureau of Investigation] and ED,” he said.
The Enforcement Directorate has claimed that more than Rs 4 crore collected from bar owners between December and February was routed to Deshmukh’s charitable trust in Nagpur through four shell companies in Delhi.
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