Rohit Pawar Questioned By ED For 2nd Time In 10 Days

Mumbai: For the second time in last 10 days, NCP MLA Rohit Pawar, the grand nephew of party supremo Sharad Pawar, appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday in connection with a money laundering probe into the alleged Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam.

The 38-year-old MLA from Karjat-Jamkhed was earlier questioned by the agency on January 24.

On Thursday, he reached the ED's office situated at Ballard Estate in South Mumbai at 1.05 pm. A large number of police personnel were deployed near the ED office. Sharad Pawar’s wife Pratibha Pawar was present at the NCP office located nearby the ED office.

Hundreds of NCP workers, who had come from across the state, held a hunger strike near the ED office to protest the action. Addressing them, Rohit Pawar said that efforts are made to throttle the voice of democracy. “The ED action has begun just when the elections are round the corner. I have not done anything wrong in the business. I will keep on fighting (against the ED action),” he added.

The ED had conducted searches on January 5 on the of Baramati Agro, a company owned by Rohit Pawar, and some linked entities in Baramati, Pune, Aurangabad and some other locations.

The case was filed after the Bombay High Court issued an order to investigate the allegations of selling sugar factories in the Maharashtra cooperative sector through alleged fraudulent means and also that they were sold at throwaway prices.