Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party Chief, Chandrakant Patil on Thursday, 8 April claimed that Maharashtra would be a “fit case of President’s rule”, adding that his party was not making that demand.
Patil reiterated that experts should identify what else is needed to impose the President’s rule, saying, "If you want to blame the Centre for everything, why not give the state administration to the central government?”, according to PTI.
Patil’s remarks come a day after suspended police officer Sachin Vaze’s explosive letter accusing former home minister Anil Deshmukh and Transport Minister Anil Parab and others of pressuring him to extort money from the contractors of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and illegal tobacco factories and bars in the city.
Vaze was arrested in connection with the scare caused by explosives in a parked car near Mukesh Ambani’s residence, as well as with the death of Mansukh Hiren – the owner of the said car.
The BJP chief further said, as per PTI, “Two state ministers will have to resign in another 15 days. Some people will go to court against these ministers and then they will have to quit”.
He added that there is a possibility that a probe against Parab may be clubbed with the ongoing investigation against the former Maharashtra home minister.
‘Organised Crime’
Deshmukh had moved to the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court order directing a CBI probe into allegations of corruption levelled against him by former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh. The SC on 6 April, however dismissed the pleas, and did not rule in Deskhmukh’s favour to drop the CBI probe.
Calling Deshmukh a “hypocrite”, Patil reportedly said, “In the resignation letter, he (Deshmukh) says he is quitting to facilitate a free and fair probe, and the next day he moves the Supreme Court against the probe.”.
Accusing the incumbent government of being part of an “organised crime”, the state BJP chief asserted as per PTI that if evidence is confirmed, provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act will have to be invoked.
He added that the MAV government had defended Vaze aggressively during the budget session, leading to the Assembly being adjourned nine times. He indicated the contradiction now of leaders from the ruling government not trusting him.
Former Maharashtra chief minister and senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis called Vaze’s allegations against the two ministers as serious, saying that the ‘revelations’ are “not good for the reputation of Maharashtra and the state police”.
Fadnavis said to PTI, “The CBI or any other competent authority should investigate the letter’s content and bring out the truth”.
About Vaze’s Letter
In the letter, Vaze said that Deshmukh had told him that if he paid Rs 2 crore to him, "he would convince (Sharad) Pawar to allow him back into the force."
Vaze further claimed that he was summoned to Sahyadri Guest House by Deshmukh in October 2020, where he was asked to collect Rs 3-3.5 lakh from 1,650 Mumbai bars and restaurants, an order Vaze claims he refused to adhere to, and also told Deshmukh that there were only 200 bars in the area.
Vaze also accused Maharashtra Transport Minister and Shiv Sena leader Anil Parab of extortion, saying that he met with him in July-August of 2020, where he was asked to collect Rs 50 crore from Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust (SBUT) to end an ongoing inquiry against them.
Anil Parab has refuted the allegations, calling them an attempt to “defame the government.”
(With inputs from PTI)
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