Raut claims ED officials involved in extortion racket

Sanjay Raut, in a press conference, said that he has exposed the “biggest corruption” by the ED officials, and listed out 70 bank transactions worth ₹58.93 crore remitted to Navlani’s accounts

Mumbai Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday said that the Mumbai police is probing extortion charges against four officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and one Jitendra Chandralal Navlani, who acted as a conduit in the alleged “racket”.

Sanjay Raut also wrote to the Prime Minister’s Office on February 28, sharing the details and documents about the alleged misuse of powers by the federal agency to extort money (Bhushan Koyande)

Raut, in a press conference, said that he has exposed the “biggest corruption” by the ED officials, and listed out 70 bank transactions worth ₹58.93 crore remitted to Navlani’s accounts.

“An FIR has been registered with Mumbai police commissioner against Jitendra Navlani and four ED officials for extortion and corruption. Mumbai police are beginning the probe. Mark my words, some ED officials can also go behind bars for this,” Raut said. He further added, “Mumbai police will probe the entire matter. They have the authority to summon anybody just like how you (central agencies) have.”

The complainant, Arvind Jagannath Bhosale, a Shiv Sena functionary, in his letter to the Mumbai police commissioner, did not name ED officials. The letter, a copy of which is with HT, said “unknown personnel of the Enforcement Directorate of the western region”.

Raut also wrote to the Prime Minister’s Office on February 28, sharing the details and documents about the alleged misuse of powers by the federal agency to extort money.

Alleging that ED officers were acting as an “ATM” for BJP, Raut said, “In the last few years, ED officials and agents have been involved in extortion rackets, which are threatening builders and corporates. I have passed on this information to the prime minister,” he said.

“A key name in this network is Jitendra Chandralal Navlani. He has seven companies in which funds have come from over 100 builders. The companies which were under ED probe, have transferred money to these seven companies. Navlani works for senior ED officials, including directors and joint directors,” he further added.

Citing an example, Raut said that in 2017, ED probed Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd. Subsequently, ₹25 crore were transferred from Dewan Housing Finance to Navlani’s seven companies. Till March 31, 2020, additionally ₹15 crore were transferred to Navlani’s companies, the documents showed.

Raut said that what he shared on Tuesday was a small chapter. “Today, I’ve exposed the country’s biggest scam. In the next press conference, I will name ED officials and who got what.”

The Sena leader further targeted BJP leader Kirit Somaiya and his son BJP corporator Niel Somaiya, over his alleged business partnership with Rakesh Wadhawan, HDIL founder and an accused in the Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank scam case. Raut alleged that Kirit Somaiya blackmailed Wadhawan to get ownership and development rights of buildings in Vasai through a middleman, one Devendra Ladhani.

Raut shared documents where Somaiya had filed complaints in 2015 against HDIL to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) for usurping a 63-acre plot of Mumbai airport. However, he did not complain to the police or any central agency about the alleged land grab and neither did he raise the issue in the Lok Sabha.

“On December 1, 2016, Somaiya’s son Niel became a partner in Nicon Infra LLP. In July 2017, Nicon Infra purchased rights of development on a 5,168 sq metre plot from Wadhavan. Later, Nicon Infra got the development rights for two buildings on Sai Rhythm Realtors Pvt Ltd land admeasuring 14,420 sq metres in Vasai. That land originally was owned by Wadhwan,” he alleged.

“The entire transaction is suspicious. Rakesh Wadhvan was blackmailed in the PMC Bank. When Somaiya was accusing Wadhwan of corruption, then how did he enter into a business partnership. Looking at the evidence that is coming up; mark my words, the father-son duo will go to jail,” he added.

Meanwhile, dismissing the allegations, Somaiya said, “I am not connected to Rakesh Wadhwan or the Vasai properties. I have never spoken without official documents, but he is merely indulging in drama because he (Raut) wants to shift attention from the Shivaji Nagar jumbo Covid centre...He has been making the same allegations again but I’ll say again that I am not remotely connected,” he told reporters in Pune in a press conference.

Responding to Raut’s comment that Somaiya was the “fifth agent” of the federal agency, Somaiya said, “Whether it is ED, CBI, EOW, or Supreme Court, I make complaints based on evidence, and therefore action is taken. If an action happens based on my complaints, then I am Maharashtra’s agent, not anybody else’s. I will smilingly accept being called an ED agent if I am rooting out mafias from Maharashtra.”

The Sena’s move to expose the alleged extortion racket is expected to intensify the tussle between the Sena-led Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) Centre. It coincided with the searches carried out by the Income Tax department at residences of a few Shiv Sena leaders in Mumbai.

Maharashtra BJP chief spokesperson Keshav Upadhye asked Raut that if he had the evidence all along, then why did he wait for so long. “Writing a letter is not proof. At least an editor like you should know this.”