Supreme Court to hear ex-Maharashtra HM Anil Deshmukh's plea seeking protection in money laundering case today

Anil Deshmukh, alleged in the Mumbai money laundering case, is being probed by the Enforcement Directorate for alleged extortion from a bunch of orchestra bars in the city. The 71-year-old leader of the Nationalist Congress Party had earlier skipped previous summons for inquiries.

Published on: Jul 30, 2021, 05:44:36 IST

Written by Joydeep Bose | Edited by Meenakshi Ray, Hindustan Times, New Delhi

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The Supreme Court is on Friday set to hear a petition filed by former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh, seeking protection from any "coercive action", in the money laundering case registered against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Anil Deshmukh, former home minister of Maharashtra, now alleged in a money laundering case. (File Photo / HT)

Anil Deshmukh, accused of money laundering, is being probed by the ED for alleged extortion from a bunch of orchestra bars in the city. According to the allegations, an amount of ₹4.7 crore, collected as "extortion" from the orchestra bars by dismissed Mumbai Police officer Sachin Waze allegedly on Deshmukh's instructions, was later transferred to the former Maharashtra home minister's Nagpur-based educational trust by his son, Hrishikesh. The transaction was routed via two hawala operators and was showed as a 'donation', as per the allegations.

Also Read | Allegations of corruption against Anil Deshmukh: CBI raids 12 places in Maharashtra

Deshmukh is the president of the trust and his two sons, Salil and Hrishikesh, are trustees.

The 71-year-old leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) earlier skipped summons issued by the ED seeking appearance for inquiries. In his plea to the Supreme Court, Deshmukh has now challenged the summons issued by the central agency and sought protection for both himself and his son, Hrishikesh.

A Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice AM Khanwilkar, adjourned the matter earlier this week for a hearing on Friday and instructed Deshmukh's legal counsel to provide a copy of the plea to the ED and the state government of Maharashtra.

The top court is scheduled to hear the case at 2pm on Friday.

Also Read | Anil Deshmukh writes letter to ED, claims probe against him not transparent

The case against the former home minister was registered on May 11. On June 25, the ED raided Deshmukh's residences in Nagpur, Mumbai, and three other places. Before that, in April, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted raids at four premises of Deshmukh after registering an FIR against him in connection with the case.

After the raids, Deshmukh said that former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh made false allegations against him after he was removed from the post over his suspicious role.

Param Bir Singh, in his letter to Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, had alleged that Deshmukh had indulged in "malpractices" and asked suspended Mumbai Police officer Sachin Waze to collect ₹100 crore every month.

(With inputs from agencies)

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