Sanjay Raut will appear before the ED at 12 P.M. and has asked Shiv Sena workers, not to panic

Sanjay Raut, the head of the Shiv Sena, stated on Friday that he will appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office today at noon in connection with a money laundering case and urged party workers not to congregate in front of the probe agency's office.

"I'll be in front of the ED today at 12 P.M. I respect the summons given to me, and it is my responsibility to cooperate with the investigating authorities. I urge Shiv Sena members not to congregate at the ED headquarters. Don't be concerned!" Raut said in a tweet.

 

In his post, Raut also mentioned Sharad Pawar, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. He also included a photo of himself standing in front of a portrait of the late Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray. The Rajya Sabha MP was supposed to be questioned on Tuesday. However, his counsel requested 13-14 days to deliver the materials to the investigation agency; however, the request was denied by the Agency.

 

After failing to appear in his first summons on Monday due to the then-political situation in Maharashtra, the ED issued him a second summons to appear before July 1. Raut is being investigated in connection with the redevelopment of Patra Chawl in Mumbai. In connection with the redevelopment fraud, the ED attached immovable properties worth Rs 11.15 crore in April this year, including a flat in Dadar owned by Sanjay Raut's wife Varsha and eight land parcels in Kihim near Alibag owned jointly by the latter and Swapna Patkar. Swapna is the wife of Sujit Patkar, a Sena leader's close associate.

 

According to the federal agency, its inquiry indicated that approximately Rs 100 crore was moved from the real estate company, HDIL, to Pravin Raut's account, who then diverted a portion of these monies to various accounts of his close colleagues, family members, and commercial companies. Praveen Raut was a director of Guruashish Constructions, which is said to be a subsidiary of HDIL (Housing Development Infrastructure Limited), one of the defendants in the lawsuit. Pravin Raut had previously been arrested by the Maharashtra police's economic crimes wing. The ED summons of Raut, a confidant of Shiv Sena president and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, comes as the party faces escalating difficulty in the aftermath of internal unrest.

 

 

Image Courtesy: Twitter @rautsanjay61