BJP leader Chitra Wagh’s husband booked in DA case

Case triggers a war of words between BJP and MVA partners

The Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has registered a first information report (FIR) against Kishor Wagh, who is the husband of state BJP vice-president Chitra Wagh, in a disproportionate assets (DA) case.

The case has been registered against Wagh, who was an employee of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital, under Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, Section 13 (2) and 13 (1) E.

The ACB in its investigation report has found that the Wagh family's income is 90 percent more than their actual income. Wagh had not sought the government permission while flying to Dubai and he has not also filed his income details with the government department that is mandatory.

The anti-graft agency’s move comes at a time when Chitra Wagh has been at the forefront of campaign demanding removal of Shiv Sena minister Sanjay Rathod from state cabinet for his alleged links with the Tik Tok star Pooja Chavan’s suicide case.

Chitra Wagh and BJP have slammed the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government saying that ACB’s move was a political vendetta. She strongly denied the ACB charges saying that her husband is innocent as he has not taken a single penny.

There are several pending cases but the ACB does not have time for the inquiry. “The home department is after my husband. When I was in the NCP and the then BJP-led government had framed the charges at that time, our party leader Sharad Pawar checked the details and told me there was nothing serious there. My husband is innocent, Pawar told me," noted Chitra Wagh.

However, the MVA partners including the NCP and Congress claimed that the case was registered in 2016 when the BJP-led government was in power. The ACB registered the FIR on February 12 based on its investigation.

Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee spokesman Sachin Sawant refuted allegations levelled by Chitra Wagh and other BJP leaders of political vendetta politics. He reminded that it was former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who moved this matter to the ACB for open inquiry.

“Meanwhile, Chitra Wagh left the NCP and joined the BJP. Then due to the pandemic situation, the inquiry by the ACB was not completed. Now, it has been done and FIR has been filed against Kishor Wagh," said Sawant.

NCP spokesman Mahesh Tapase reiterated that the case was registered in 2016 and now ACB has filed FIR.

Meanwhile, BJP has warned that it will not allow the state government to air its views during the ensuing budget session in the state legislature if Rathod’s resignation is not taken before March 1.

State BJP chief Chandrakant Patil warned that BJP will step up agitation demanding Rathod’s resignation and free and fair investigation into the Pooja Chavan suicide case. He claimed that the Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray is worried about saving his chair as he is not taking any action against six ministers from the MVA government facing serious cases.

In a related development, BJP’s women wing on Saturday staged a statewide agitation demanding Rathod’s resignation.