Sanjay Nirupam demands ED probe in CM Uddhav Thackeray's new home deal

Former Member of Parliament Sanjay Nirupam said if the CM was genuine then he should prove him wrong

In a move that may cause further trouble to the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, a senior Congress leader, Sanjay Nirupam, has demanded a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into a property deal related to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's under-construction home, which is next to his Kalanagar residence.

In a series of tweets on Thursday, the former Mumbai Congress president asked the ED director to shift his attention to Mumbai to seek answers in a money laundering case, in which a senior Congress leader, Ahmed Patel, was also questioned. Nirupam tweeted, "If @dir_ed's queries are exhausted in Delhi in Sterling Biotech Money Laundering probe, they should turn their attention to Mumbai now. They may get some answers if the huge property deal between its director Rajbhushan Dikshit & Chief Minister of Maharashtra is probed."

The allegations

In the second tweet, the former Shiv Sena MP who switched over to the Congress 16 years ago, said, "Yes, Matoshree2 has been purchased from Rajbhushan Dikshit (and his brother) who was arrested & later charge sheeted in R14,000 cr money laundering case in which #Sandesaras are absconding. Even #CBI is investigating the fraud."

When mid-day asked, Nirupam said his statements did not imply to Patel because he has said that the ED must have exhausted asking questions in Delhi, they should now focus from where Dikshit could have got substantial black money. "Dikshit was charge-sheeted by ED and CBI, for money laundering and bank fraud respectively. Some of this black money can be traced to the deal between him and Thackeray," said Nirupam.

"Rajbhushan Dikshit received just Rs 5.8 cr by CM and his familly for an 10 thousand sq ft Matoshree2 property which faces #BKC. As per Mumbai property market experts, declared value of the proprietary is too less. Beyond cheque payment, major cash transaction had taken place, (SIC)" said Nirupam in another tweet, asking the ED in the next, "ED must probe that whether the proceed of the deal was laundered by Rajbhushan Dikshit and his brother? And for that a thorough enquiry into the property deal is required."

'Within my right'

When asked whether his allegations would impact his party's prospects in the MVA government, Nirupam said he always spoke his mind and facts. "This is not the Congress government but the Sena government. My party has amply clarified its position. I am within my right to raise issues that happened during the previous government," he said. Nirupam said if the CM was genuine then he should prove him wrong. "Let him talk about the deal and the actual money that exchanged hands," added the former Sena and Congress MP. The Sena chose to ignore Nirupam's tweets, saying he was not credible. "What is his credibility. We won't react to him. He should at least remember who has given him a foothold in his life," said party MP Arvind Sawant.

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