3 years on, ex-cop Waze targets Deshmukh in another letter; Fadnavis faces fire from rival
3 years on, ex-cop Waze targets Deshmukh in another letter; Fadnavis faces fire from rival
Mumbai, Dismissed policeman Sachin Waze has dropped another 'letter bomb' claiming that former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh pressured him to do several "illegal works" with the latter also saying on occasions that the task had come from "Pawar saheb". In 2021, Waze had sought to submit in a special NIA court in Mumbai a letter in which he alleged Deshmukh had asked him to collect money from bars, restaurants, a claim then rubbished by the senior politician. On Monday, Waze, who is in judicial custody, informed the Special Judge for MPs and MLAs cases, AU Kadam, about the latest letter he had written to Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the home portfolio, on July 30. "During Anil Deshmukh's tenure , the level of work of the Home Ministry fell to the lowest level. I am also a victim. Under pressure from Deshmukh, I was forced to do many illegal works that should not have been done by an officer like me. In many cases, Deshmukh used to say 'this work has come from Patil Saheb' and get the work done," he claimed in the letter. "I did not dare to ask who exactly was meant by 'Pawar Saheb'," Waze further claimed in the letter that he had written from jail. His letter further mentioned that Deshmukh pressured many people in the names of "big Pawar saheb" and "Patil saheb". "His group collected crores for transfers and promotions of police officers. Some things happened, but most didn't," Waze's letter said. In the letter, Waze claimed, during his stint in the crime intelligence unit, his team had carried out the biggest raid on hookah parlours in the city till date. "We seized the biggest illegal hookah distributor in India and sealed his godown. At that time, instead of arresting the main distributor, former minister Jayant Patil ordered me to arrest someone else," the letter alleged. Waze's letter also referred to the Chandiwal Commission, which was formed by the then MVA government to probe the corruption allegations against Deshmukh. Justice Chandiwal rejected Deshmukh's attempts to pressure the investigation, Waze claimed in the letter. The dismissed policeman claimed he was falsely implicated in a crime during the Chandiwal Commission investigation. IPS officer Param Bir Singh, in March 2021, alleged that Deshmukh, then-home minister, had given a target to police officers to collect ₹100 crore per month from restaurants and bars in Mumbai. Former assistant police inspector Waze, arrested in the 'Antilia' bomb scare case in March 2021, too had levelled similar allegations. The HC had, in April 2021, directed the CBI to carry out a preliminary inquiry. The CBI, based on this inquiry, registered an FIR against Deshmukh and his associates for alleged corruption and misuse of official power. Besides CBI, the case is also being probed by Enforcement Directorate under provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act . Deshmukh is currently out on bail. The NCP leader had recently rubbished the allegations made by Waze. Addressing a press conference in Nagpur on Monday, Deshmukh claimed Fadnavis had tried to save ex-Mumbai police commissioner Singh from arrest by asking him to level allegations against Deshmukh to topple the MVA government. Deshmukh also called Singh the "mastermind" of the 2021 bomb scare near industrialist Mukesh Ambani's residence 'Antilia' in south Mumbai and subsequent murder of Thane businessman Mansukh Hiran. Both Fadnavis and Singh separately dismissed the allegations made by the senior NCP leader against them. Deshmukh has claimed Waze was levelling allegations against him at the behest of Fadnavis. During the press conference, reporters asked Deshmukh about Fadnavis comments that Singh and Waze were appointed when Deshmukh was the home minister. In reply, Deshmukh claimed, "When I was the home minister of Maharashtra, we came to know in an inquiry that Mumbai top cop Param Bir Singh was the mastermind behind planting of bomb in a Scorpio vehicle found near residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani. Singh was also mastermind behind the killing of the Scorpio vehicle owner. Singh along with his other accomplices had carried out this." Singh was supposed to get arrested three years back and to avoid it, he "surrendered himself to Fadnavis and the central government," the NCP leader charged. "Fadnavis assured Singh that he won't be arrested, but on the condition that he will have to level allegations against me to topple the MVA government. Hence, Param Bir Singh levelled allegations against me," Deshmukh claimed. Fadnavis dismissed Deshmukh's allegations as lies, while Singh said the NCP leader has lost his "mental balance". The ruling Shiv Sena demanded a narco test on Waze to unearth the "truth" amid a row over bribery allegations against Deshmukh. Sanjay Shirrsat, a spokesperson of Shiv Sena headed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, claimed Waze who was reinstated in the Mumbai Police when Uddhav Thackeray was chief minister was a leader of the undivided regional saffron outfit. "Waze commanded respect in the party organisation. He used to attend meetings of the Home Department and report to Shiv Sena ," Shirsat claimed while talking to reporters in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. PTI AVI CLS AW DC GK NSK BNM RSY
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