Amid the controversy over former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh's letter levelling corruption charges against state Home Minister Anil Deskhmukh, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray convened a review meeting of the state’s Law and Judiciary department at his residence on Monday, 22 March.
The meeting, which will be held at 4:30 pm, is expected to discuss the legal aspects of Param Bir Singh’s letter. This comes after Home Minister Deshmukh held a meeting with Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) chief Jai Jeet Singh on Monday.
Earlier, Nationalist Congress Party supremo Sharad Pawar addressed the Press on Monday, saying that Param Bir’s allegations against Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh were vague and that there was no question of the latter’s resignation.
Stressing that the allegations cast against Deshmukh do not stand, he added that only a thorough probe, ordered by the chief minister can bring out the truth.
A Maharashtra BJP delegation is scheduled to meet Governor Bhagat Singh Koshiyari on 24 March to discuss the prevailing situation in the state, news agency ANI reported.
What the Letter Said
Just days after the removal of Singh as Mumbai’s top cop over the handling of the Ambani bomb-scare case and the arrest of former API Sachin Vaze by the NIA, a letter reportedly written by him surfaced, in which he accused Deshmukh of corruption.
In the letter addressed to Thackeray and Koshyari, Singh claimed that Deshmukh had directed Vaze to collect Rs 100 crore every month from bars, restaurants, and other establishments.
Events So Far
On 18 March, Deshmukh had claimed that Singh was transferred due to “serious and unforgivable mistakes” of his colleagues.
Singh, who was facing criticism for his handling of the bomb-scare case, was transferred to the low-key Home Guard wing by the state government on Wednesday. Acting Director General of Police Hemant Nagrale replaced Singh.
In a public comment, Deshmukh said Singh had been transferred to ensure that the probe regarding Vaze was conducted “properly and without hindrance”.
The NIA arrested Vaze on 13 March on suspicion of his involvement in the recovery of a bomb-laden SUV and a threat note addressed to Mukesh and Nita Ambani. He was later suspended.
The Shiv Sena on Monday launched an attack on Singh and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of using him to destabilise the state government.
“While the possibility of Vaze’s involvement being traced back to Singh got stronger with the ongoing NIA investigation, he levelled these allegations to shield himself. If there is any truth to this, the BJP is clearly using Singh to defame the state government,” the editorial by Shiv Sena’s mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ read.
(With inputs from ANI)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)