WB CID officer, 3 booked for extorting money from Navlani

The alleged incident took place between May and November and one of the meetings of the complainant and the accused took place in SeaLord restaurant in Worli.

Mumbai: An FIR was registered on Monday against four people – including an officer from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal police – for allegedly extorting money from Jitendra Chanderlal Navlani, a Colaba-based businessman.

Navlani, 49, who runs a pub in south Mumbai, known as Dirty Buns, is also allegedly close to former Mumbai police commissioner Parambir Singh. (Image for representation)

Navlani, 49, who runs a pub in south Mumbai, known as Dirty Buns, is also allegedly close to former Mumbai police commissioner Parambir Singh.

In his complaint, Navlani alleged that the CID officer based in Kolkata pressured a person for allegedly implicating him (Navlani) and his wife Bhumika in a false case and conspired against them.

The accused also threatened to kill Navlani and his wife and demanded ₹10 crore extortion and succeeded in extorting a sum of ₹20 lakh, states the complaint.

The alleged incident took place between May and November and one of the meetings of the complainant and the accused took place in SeaLord restaurant in Worli, police sources said.

A case has been registered against an officer of West Bengal CID, Rajarshi Banerjee and two others, Sumit Banerjee, Sudip Dasgupta and some others under sections 384 (extortion), 386 (Extortion by putting a person in fear of death or grievous hurt) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.

An officer said that the investigation of the case was on and the police are verifying the allegations made by the complainant.

Earlier, Navlani was accused by Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut of running an extortion racket using his connections with some officers of the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

On March 3, Raut had claimed in a press briefing that he had details of 70 bank transactions amounting to ₹58.93 crore made by multiple builders and business establishments in Mumbai to Navlani.

Raut further alleged that Navlani was extorting this money on behalf of certain officers in the ED. Following Raut’s press briefing, a Shiv Sena worker Arvind Bhosle lodged a formal police complaint and an FIR was registered against Navlani by Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB).

Navlani was also booked by the ACB for approaching businessmen and promising them to reprieve from any action by the ED in lieu of money.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had also found in its investigation into the Yes Bank-DHFL fraud case that Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) also allegedly paid the money “to Navlani to bribe certain government officers to evade enquiries.”