Mumbai: Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh on Wednesday said that Mumbai police officer Sachin Vaze was being removed from the crime intelligence unit till an investigation into the mysterious death of Mansukh Hiran, linked to a vehicle found parked with explosives outside billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s residence, was concluded.
The announcement came even as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) reiterated its demand for action against Vaze for his alleged role in the death of the 48-year-old auto parts dealer, who was linked to the vehicle found parked outside billionaire Ambani’s residence Antilia on February 25 with 20 sticks of gelatin and a threat letter.
Assistant police inspector Vaze, the 49-year-old head of the crime intelligence unit of the Mumbai Crime Branch, was leading the investigation into the car found parked outside Antilia.
“Police officer Sachin Vaze will be removed from his current posting in the crime branch till the investigation is not completed. I am taking this decision in view of the rising demand from the opposition,” Deshmukh said in the Maharashtra legislative council.
Later in the day, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray said a picture of policeman Vaze as “Osama Bin Laden” was created by the opposition BJP, which wanted to “hang Vaze first” before his alleged role was investigated in the death of Hiran.
{{/usCountry}}Later in the day, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray said a picture of policeman Vaze as “Osama Bin Laden” was created by the opposition BJP, which wanted to “hang Vaze first” before his alleged role was investigated in the death of Hiran.
{{/usCountry}}On Wednesday, Vaze held meetings with senior Mumbai police officials including commissioner Parambir Singh. “I will clarify my side of the story and release a statement on Thursday,” he said.
An Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) team investigating the murder of Hiran recorded Vaze’s statement over several hours on Monday. On Tuesday, Maharashtra leader of opposition Devendra Fadnavis said that Hiran was likely murdered and demanded the arrest of Vaze, based on the statement that Hiran’s wife, 43-year-old Vimla, gave to the ATS investigators on March 7, two days after her husband’s body washed up on the Reti Bunder creek in Mumbra, Thane district.
According to Vimla’s statement, Vaze was known to Hiran and had borrowed the SUV in question in November and returned it four months later in February. Her statement also said that Vaze had been with Hiren through the course of the investigation when the SUV was traced back to him.
Fadnavis’s demand on Tuesday caused uproar in the assembly, with the ruling parties of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government trading charges with the opposition over unrelated cases, including the death by suicide of Dadra and Nagar Haveli parliamentarian Mohan Delkar, in February.
Vaze’s transfer came after Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar spoke to Thackeray on Wednesday morning, a senior party leader said.