ED's actions against Maharashtra leaders bid to subdue state govt: Sharad Pawar

NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday claimed the Enforcement Directorates actions against various Maharashtra leaders were an attempt to encroach on the state governments rights and discourage political opponentsNotably the ED is conducting a probe into separate money laundering cases against former state home minister and Anil Deshmukh NCP leader Eknath KhadseThe central agency last week also conducted raids at multiple premises in Maharashtra linked to Shiv Sena MP Bhavana Gawali in connection with a money laundering caseThe NCP shares power with the Shiv Sena and Congress in MaharashtraTalking to reporters here Pawar said Never heard of so many EDs actions in Maharashtra in the past One action is going on against Khadse another against Anil Deshmukh also against Bhawna Gawali There is an attempt to encroach upon the state governments rights case and discourage the opponents by using these agencies as toolsTo a question on the EDs raids at premises linked to Bhavana Gawali Pawar said the issue is about educational institutionsWhen there are allegations against these kind of institutions the complaints can be lodged before the charity commissioner If not the charity commissioner then there are state government agencies but here directly the ED was involved the former Union minister saidAlso read It is clear ED being used to pressurise Opposition leaders Sharad PawarAsked about the possibility of a third COVID19 wave Pawar said I have seen many events happening where the Covid19 prevention protocols are not being followedPawar said since Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has asked political parties to immediately stop agitations meetings and other events to avoid crowding he will not attend programmes involving large gatherings I will only attend programmes organised indoors with a limited number of people he saidTo a question on Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh RSS chief Mohan Bhagwats comments that Hindus and Muslims share the same ancestry Pawar quipped This is an addition to my knowledgePawar also expressed reservations over the Reserve Bank of Indias interference into the cooperative sectorThe cooperative lenders spread the banking sector to the grassroot level These banks help many people in case of financial needs The merger and closure of cooperative banks is not only harmful for the cooperative sector but also for the common people who have been benefiting from it he saidWhile earlier there was greater autonomy to select a cooperative banks chairman now these institutions will have to go to the RBI for itPawar said this has weakened the cooperative sectorThis 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