Deshmukh mastermind, brain behind money-laundering conspiracy: ED to Bombay HC

The Enforcement Directorate ED on Thursday told the Bombay High Court that Maharashtras former home minister Anil Deshmukh was the mastermind and brain behind the money laundering conspiracy and that he had misused his official position to amass wealthThe agency also alleged that Deshmukh exercised undue influence to pass favourable transfers and postings of police officialsThe ED filed its affidavit in the high court in response to the bail plea of DeshmukhThe affidavit filed by Tassine Sultan assistant director of ED sought for Deshmukhs plea to be rejected as it was devoid of merits and said that Deshmukh may influence the probe as he was an influential personThe applicant Deshmukh is the mastermind of the entire conspiracy hatched with his son Hrishikesh Deshmukh Sachin Waze dismissed police officer Sanjeev Palande and Kundan Shinde Deshmukhs former aides the agency saidThe applicant is the main conspirator and the brain behind the whole conspiracy to collect money from bars and restaurant owners the affidavit saidThe agency further claimed that Deshmukh amassed huge wealth during his public service and the source of this wealth is still unexplainedDeshmukh has not cooperated with the probe and was not able to explain the source of the wealth and was hiding the actual facts it saidThe central agency further claimed that Deshmukh has admitted that an unofficial list used to be circulated containing the names of police officials and respective places where they were to be transferred for which no records were maintainedThe agency said the probe into the case is still at a nascent stage and hence granting bail would hamper the investigation and obfuscate the trail of proceeds of crime that is yet to be identifiedDeshmukh was arrested by the ED in November 2021 and is currently in judicial custodyThe NCP leader filed a petition in the high court after a special court rejected his bail plea earlier this month He sought bail on grounds of his ailing health and termed the EDs case as false and frivolousA single bench of Justice Anuja Prabhudessai will hear Deshmukhs plea on FridayThe ED in its affidavit said Deshmukh and others obtained undue advantage for improper and dishonest performance of their public dutyThey have exercised undue influence over the transfer and posting of officials and thereby exercising undue influence over the performance of official duties by the officials it saidThe applicant in consultation with one cabinet minister used to prepare a list of names of police officials for the purpose of transfer and postings which used to be unofficially forwarded to the Additional Chief Secretary Home and the Head of the Police Establishment Board the ED saidIt added that there is no record of these meetings and there no guidelines for preparation of such an unofficial listThe proceedings of the Police Establishment Board were a mere formality wherein the members in spite of their reservation and protest had to agree and sign the recommendations of the meeting which used to be then sent to the competent authorities that is the home minister and the chief minister the agency saidThe ED said the then Additional Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte in his statement to the agency said that Deshmukh has handed him an unofficial list containing names of police officers with regard to favourable transfer and postingsThe agency further said that Deshmukh was accused of an economic offence that is of a grave and serious natureSeveral authorities have time and again emphasized the deleterious impact and heinous nature of an economic offence on the national economy the affidavit saidThe ED claimed that dismissed cop Sachin Waze was called by Deshmukh when he was the state home minister to his residence Dnyaneshwari several times and repeatedly instructed him to assist in collection of funds to achieve the target of Rs 100 crore a month from restaurants and barsDeshmukh used to call junior police officers to his official residence and give them instructions to carry out official assignments and collection schemes including financial transactions it saidThe ED reiterated that Waze had collected Rs 470 crore from restaurants and bars and handed the same to Deshmukhs former aide Kundan ShindeThe money according to ED was sent through hawala and later deposited as donations to a Nagpurbased trust owned by the Deshmukh familyScrutiny of the records of the trust Shri Sai Shikshan Sanstha revealed that the applicant has been actively using the modus operandi to launder his unaccounted cash the ED saidInvestigations revealed that the applicant in connivance with his family members has laundered unaccounted cash money totally amounting to Rs 1325 crore This was deposited later in the Trust in the garb of donation since 2011 the affidavit allegedDeshmukh has been using this modus operandi of infusing cash as share capital through shell companies and projecting the same as legitimate has built a formidable empire of businesses the ED saidFormer Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh had accused Deshmukh of asking Waze to collect money from bar owners in Mumbai a charge which the NCP leader deniedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever