ED arrests Anil Parab’s close aide Sadanand Kadam in Dapoli resort case
Kadam on Friday visited the ED office at Ballard Estate in the afternoon pursuant to summons issued to him earlier and was placed under arrest in the evening, after questioning for over three hours. ED officials said he will be produced before a special PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court
MUMBAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday arrested Sadanand Kadam, alleged partner of Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MLC Anil Parab in connection with the alleged money laundering and involvement in the construction of an illegal resort in Dapoli in Ratnagiri district.
Kadam on Friday visited the ED office at Ballard Estate in the afternoon pursuant to summons issued to him earlier and was placed under arrest in the evening, after questioning for over three hours. ED officials said he will be produced before a special PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court.
People close to Kadam said he has recently undergone surgery for his shoulder ailment and the doctor prescribed him complete rest till March 24. But on Friday ED officials summoned him for questioning.
It has been alleged that former transport minister Parab in connivance with Kadam allegedly constructed resorts in Dapoli in violation of coastal regulation zone (CRZ) norms.
“Kadam is a front man of Anil Parab and carried out all the irregularities on behalf of Parab. His house in Ratnagiri was also searched, and some articles have been seized. We would seek his custody from the court for further interrogating him in the case,” said an ED officer.
The agency began its investigation in the matter after the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change had filed a complaint against Parab, Sai Resort, Sea Conch Resort, and others, before the judicial magistrate court in Dapoli, alleging violation of sections 7, 15 and 19 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
An FIR was also registered at Dapoli police station against Parab and others for cheating and causing losses to the state exchequer.
ED officials said Parab, in connivance with his friend and businessman Sadanand Kadam (brother of politician Ramdas Kadam), illegally obtained permission from the sub-divisional officer to convert the Dapoli land from agricultural usage to non-agricultural purposes.
“Parab illegally acquired permission from the revenue department to build twin bungalows on the piece of land falling under CRZ-III, a no-development zone. After obtaining the permission, he illegally constructed Sai Resort NX as a ground+2 floor structure,” the agency said.
The ED also claimed that Parab hid his identity as the owner obtained permission from the revenue department in the name of an earlier landowner, Vibhas Sathe, by forging his signature on the application.
Parab, the statement said, also hid the fact — that the land fell within CRZ-III — from the village panchayat and pressured the rural body to transfer the land along with the building in his name although there was no mention of any construction in the original sale deed.
The agency further said the Sena leader cheated the panchayat by making an application for taxation purposes before the completion of the resort. The payment for construction was deliberately made in cash and construction commenced even before the land was registered in Parab’s name to hide the identity of the real owner so that if any violation came to the fore in future, the onus could be on Sathe, the ED said.
“When complaints over the illegal construction of Sai Resort NX came to light, Parab sold the said land to Sadanand Kadam to conceal the illegalities and irregularities,” the ED has said in a statement released earlier.
Kadam was questioned by the agency in the past. The ED in January this year, provisionally attached 42 guntas owned by Parab in Dapoli and another piece of land at Murud in the Raigad district. The Murud property is worth ₹2.73 crore while the resort along with the plot is estimated to be valued at ₹7.46 crore, the ED said in the statement.
