The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Sunday detained Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut after hours of search at his Mumbai residence in connection with a money laundering case.
The search operation followed two summonses issued by the ED against Raut, the latest being on July 27. Raut was summoned for questioning by the ED in a money laundering case linked to the alleged irregularities in the re-development of a Mumbai ‘chawl’ and related transactions involving his wife and ‘associates’.
Raut, editor of the Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’, had appeared before the agency in Mumbai to record his statement on July 1 in connection with the case.
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After that, the ED had summoned him twice, but he had skipped the summonses citing his engagement with the ongoing Parliament session. At 7 am on Sunday, ED officials, accompanied by Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, reached Raut’s ‘Maitri’ bungalow located in suburban Bhandup, and began the search. The Rajya Sabha member, who is in the Uddhav Thackeray camp of the Shiv Sena, had denied any wrongdoing and alleged that he was being targeted due to political vendetta.
“I swear by late Balasabheb Thackeray that I have nothing to do with any scam,” Raut tweeted shortly after the ED action began. “I will die but won’t leave Shiv Sena,” Raut added.
(With inputs from agencies)
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