Sharad Pawar ridicules BJP over IT raids, says not worried about ‘guests’ at home

Ajit Pawar says will talk after I-T authorities leave, as raids continue for the second day, today

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Pune: As the Income Tax department raids (IT raids) on firms owned by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s relatives and aides continued for the second successive day on Friday, both Ajit Pawar and his uncle, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar mocked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre retorting that they were not worried by the “guests at their home”.

It may be recalled that teams of Income Tax officials have been raiding businesses including sugar factories and searching the homes of Ajit Pawar’s sisters in Kolhapur and Pune, as well as the Mumbai office of his son Parth Pawar. The raids have been ongoing for over 30 hours now. 

Addressing NCP office bearers and workers in Solapur on Friday, Sharad Pawar took a jibe at the Modi government at the Centre, stating: “I heard that the Centre sent some guests (I-T officials) yesterday at Ajit Pawar’s place (firms linked to the Deputy Chief Minister’s kin) …but we are never worried of such guests.” 

The NCP supremo reminded his party workers of the time in September 2019, when just ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly election that year he had received a notice from the Enforcement Directorate (ED). 

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The NCP chief had been named in a money-laundering case by the ED in connection with the multi-crore Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam. 

Then, Sharad Pawar, taking the ED head-on, had proposed to present himself before the agency’s Mumbai office after which the ED conveyed that the NCP chief’s appearance would not be necessary.  

Pawar further remarked, “I was neither part of the bank’s board of directors, nor had I ever taken a loan from there. Yet, I was slapped with an ED notice…but Maharashtra’s public thought the then ruling BJP crazy. So, even if such raids are being carried out against firms owned by Ajit Pawar or his relatives or some other person, the end reaction to all this will be manifested in the public’s ire.” 

The NCP chief further warned that the public would teach the BJP a lesson for shamelessly misusing central agencies in such a reckless fashion. 

Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar, who was on his weekly official tour of Pune district, similarly described I-T officials as “guests” while stating that he would only speak on the raids once the officials had departed.   

“A number of ‘guests’ are at different homes… When they leave, I will say whatever I have to. I have already given my reaction yesterday, so there is no need to repeat myself and I urge people to stop shooting pointlessly in the clouds… There is no cause for fear. Everything will come out before the public in due course of time,” said the Deputy Chief Minister. 

Meanwhile, NCP activists including the NCP Women’s wing staged a big show of strength outside Pune’s Council House where Ajit Pawar was due to take a Covid-19 review meeting. The large crowd of his supporters gathered outside the meeting venue and were only pacified after Pawar urged them to go home.