Pawar defends home minister Deshmukh
MUMBAI: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo and chief architect of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition government Sharad Pawar said that the allegations of corruption against Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh are incorrect and there is no reason to call for his resignation, a day after the former Mumbai Police commissioner addressed an unsigned letter to chief minister Uddhav Thackeray accusing Deshmukh of setting extortion targets of ₹100 crore for select police officials.
At a press conference, Pawar pointed out that contrary to former Param Bir Singh’s letter where he mentioned that Deshmukh met Sachin Vaze, a police officer who has been suspended in connection with the bomb
threat case outside Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani’s home in February, the home minister was at a Nagpur hospital for Covid-19 treatment. He said a probe into the allegations was CM Thackeray’s prerogative.
Former CP Param Bir Singh, who was transferred from his post to Commandant General of Home Guards, Maharashtra, on March 17, brought up the charges in a letter a few days after Deshmukh told reporters that the transfer was not routine but due to “serious and unpardonable mistakes” committed by police officers in the Antilia security scare investigation.
Singh accused Deshmukh of asking Vaze to “accumulate ₹100 crore per month from bars, restaurants and other establishments in the city”. Deshmukh has denied all the allegations.
Pawar said that the allegations were made to divert attention from the bomb scare case in which a car was found outside Ambani’s home with gelatin sticks.
Defending the home minister, Pawar showed a certificate issued by Alexis multi-specialty Hospital in Nagpur, where Deshmukh was admitted for treatment of Covid-19 between February 5 and 15. After being discharged, Deshmukh was in home quarantined till February 27, following doctors’ advice, he said.
“In view of fresh evidence...it would not be fair to take Anil Deshmukh’s resignation… The BJP’s demand for home minister’s resignation has no substance… I am absolutely clear that allegations made against Deshmukh are incorrect as he was in Nagpur,” the NCP chief said.
However, as a counter to Pawar’s claims, former chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis pointed to the minister’s public appearance on February 15. Another BJP leader, Amit Malviya, said Deshmukh met a delegation of state Congress leaders on February 8 where he claimed that Indian celebrities reacted to international pop icon Rihanna’s tweet on farmers’ protest under pressure from the BJP.
“Shri Sharad Pawar ji said, from 15th to 27th February HM Anil Deshmukh was in home quarantine. But actually along with security guards & media, he was seen taking press conference!,” Fadnavis tweeted.
Responding to Fadnavis, Deshmukh said in a video statement that he met mediapersons before leaving the hospital. “I was infected with coronavirus and was admitted to Alexis hospital, Nagpur, between February 5 and 15. After being discharged on February 15, I answered a few media queries sitting on a chair because I was fit by then. Later, I left for my residence and was home quarantined till February 27. I stepped out of my home on February 28,” Deshmukh said.
Meanwhile, the anti-terrorism squad (ATS) of the Mumbai Police arrested two persons in connection with Thane businessman Mansukh Hiran’s mysterious death. The car parked outside Ambani’s residence allegedly belonged to Hiran.