Court takes cognizance of ED's charge sheet against Anil Deshmukh; his bail plea alleges `persecution'

A special court here on Friday took cognizance of the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) charge sheet against former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh in an alleged money laundering case.

The NCP leader, in his bail application filed before the special court for Prevention of Money Laundering Act cases, claimed he was the victim of ''gross persecution'' by probe agencies.

Special judge R N Rokade `issued process' against all the accused (asked them or their lawyers to remain present at the next hearing) and also asked the ED to file a reply on Deshmukh's bail plea.

The ED last month filed a 7,000-page supplementary charge sheet, which named Deshmukh and his sons as accused.

The first charge sheet in the case had named Deshmukh's aides.

The former minister was arrested by the ED on November 1, 2021, and is currently in judicial custody.

After being denied default bail (bail on technical grounds), the senior NCP leader, through his lawyer Aniket Nikam, has sought regular bail now.

The bail application claimed he was the victim of ''gross persecution'' by some elements for ''blatantly malafide considerations.'' The case reflected ''shocking abuse of power and authority by the concerned officials who have virtually unleashed a reign of terror by subverting the process of law,'' the plea said.

Such ''adventurism'', if unchecked, will sound the ''death-knell to the fundamental rights,'' it added.

The application also questioned the credibility of dismissed policeman Sachin Waze's statement to the ED, in the light of Waze's later deposition before an inquiry commission probing the corruption allegations against Deshmukh.

Before the commission, Waze made a complete turn-around and denied making any payment to the former home minister or any of his staff, it noted.

The fact that there are a number of cases against Waze also speaks volumes about his credibility, the bail application said.

The ED is relying on Waze's statement to the agency that Deshmukh had asked him to collect money from bar and hotel owners. The statement is a part of the charge sheet.

The court asked the probe agency to file its reply to Deshmukh's bail plea on February 4.

The ED launched a probe against Deshmukh after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed an FIR against the NCP leader on April 21, 2021, for alleged corruption.

The ED's case is that while serving as state home minister, Deshmukh, through assistant police inspector Waze (who was later dismissed from service after arrest in the 'Antilia' bomb scare case), collected Rs 4.70 crore from various bars in Mumbai.

The money was laundered and routed to Nagpur-based Shri Sai Shikshan Sansthan, an educational trust controlled by the Deshmukh family, the ED claimed.