NCP (SP) supremo Sharad Pawar has claimed that he was strongly against amendments made to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) proposed by his colleague from alliance partner Congress and then Union minister, P Chidambaram. He made this statement at the launch of Heaven in Hell (Narkatla Swarg), written by Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut about the time he spent in jail following his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on allegations of money laundering.

Pawar mentioned that changes in the Act made it so that it put the onus on the accused to prove their innocence, rather than it being the investigating agency or government’s responsibility to prove culpability. “Soon after the amendment, the UPA was out of power, and BJP formed its government. The consequences of the changes are seen today,” Pawar said.