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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) made a significant move on Friday by attaching assets worth more than ₹50 crore belonging to a sugar mill owned by Rohit Pawar, the grandnephew of Sharad Pawar, a prominent figure in Indian politics. Rohit Pawar, a 38-year-old MLA from Karjat-Jamkhed, has emerged as a strong leader within Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) following Ajit Pawar’s departure. The ED’s action comes in the wake of Rohit Pawar’s summons in connection with a ration scam.
The attached assets include 161.30 acres of land, along with plant, machinery, and buildings of the Kannad Sahakari Sakhar Karkhana Limited (Kannad SSK) situated in Kannad village of Aurangabad district. These assets have been provisionally attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), as stated by the ED in an official statement.
Rohit Pawar, upon appearing before the ED, raised concerns about the political motives behind the timing of the inquiry. “Election is nearby, so people feel that these proceedings against opposition leaders are because of that…probe is happening against only opposition leaders,” Rohit remarked.
Earlier this year, on January 24, Rohit Pawar was interrogated by the ED for approximately 10 hours in connection with the money laundering case. Subsequently, he was summoned for further interrogation on February 1.
The money laundering case is linked to the MSC Bank scam, amounting to ₹25,000 crore, which led to the filing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Bombay High Court by four individuals. The PIL shed light on the alleged modus operandi of the fraud, revealing instances where certain sugar mills defaulted on loans granted without proper due diligence. These sugar mills were subsequently attached by the MSC banks and auctioned off to various office bearers of the bank and politicians.
Responding to the PIL, the Bombay High Court ordered the registration of a case. The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Maharashtra government conducted an investigation into the matter. When the EOW filed a closure report in 2020 in the Bombay Session Court, the ED filed an intervention petition against the closure report and initiated its investigation.
The attachment of assets by the ED marks a significant development in the ongoing investigation, raising pertinent questions about the alleged financial irregularities and political implications surrounding the case.
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