Mumbai: Former Vasai-Virar civic chief Anil Pawar had started compelling builders, developers and architects to pay bribes to get approvals as soon as he assumed the charge and the files were not cleared till the bribe was paid, YS Reddy, suspended town planning department deputy director, told the ED. Reddy also apparently revealed that Pawar had pressured him for not taking his name and revealing facts.

The agency has alleged that Pawar collected bribes amounting to Rs 169.18 crore; Rs 16.59 crore for turning a blind eye to illegal constructions, which were built already, and Rs 152.59 crores for giving permission to new ones. The ED recently submitted a prosecution complaint against 18 accused, while pegging the amount of laundered funds to Rs 300.92 crore.

“Pawar asked to approach developers, architects, etc, and convince them to pay bribes in cash,” Reddy told the agency, adding his staffer Ankit Mishra used to talk to builders, developers and maintained bribe records.

He further revealed that Pawar would collect all the cash on Friday and go to Satara, Nashik and Pune, said the ED. Reddy even confirmed the list of commencement certificates illegally granted by Pawar in 457 cases of urban zone and 129 in green zone, it added.

The ED said that the former civic chief used tainted funds for warehousing ventures and land projects. He made the ‘investments’ through his wife Bharti, daughters Shrutika and Revati, and relatives like Amol Patil (Bharti’s cousin) and Janardan Pawar (his nephew).

“The Antonov Warehousing Parks project, Bhiwandi, and M/s Dhwaja Warehouses Pvt Ltd became the primary vehicles by Pawar for converting bribes into recorded equity,” the ED said.

He converted bribes into legally-titled family wealth while distancing the illicit source, thereby enjoying the amounts as untainted property, asserted the agency.

A bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Aarti Sathe passed the order observing that the authorities had failed to recognise the preferential right of the landowner to redevelop the slum on its own land before proceeding with acquisition under Section 14(1) of the Slum Act.

NESCO had challenged the 2016 state notification acquiring its properties measuring about 1,500 sq. metres on the ground that it violated its constitutional right to property under Article 300A.

The company contended that despite being the rightful owner, its proposal to redevelop the slum was ignored, while a society of slum dwellers and a developer (N. Rose Developer) pushed for acquisition without proper notice or hearing.

According to the petition, the authorities issued show-cause notices in 2009 and 2013 but never served them properly. The land was later declared a slum area and acquired by the state in 2016, following which compensation of only Rs 12 lakh was awarded.

During the hearing, senior advocate Aspi Chinoy, appearing for NESCO, cited recent Supreme Court rulings which upheld the principle that a private landowner has a preferential right to redevelop slum land before any acquisition can be undertaken.

In a significant turn, the proposed slum society, Shivshardha Co-operative Housing Society, filed an affidavit admitting that its earlier acquisition request was made under the influence of the developer and that it had now resolved to support NESCO in redeveloping the property.

Allowing the petition, the bench quashed the acquisition and strongly reminded state officials of their “responsibility before exercising the draconian powers under Section 14 (of the Slum Act),” cautioning that such powers must not be misused “at the behest of unscrupulous elements” or to discard the rights of private landowners.

Mumbai: The Enforcement Directorate’s investigation has revealed that YS Reddy, suspended deputy director in the town planning department of the Vasai-Virar civic body, collected bribes to the tune of Rs 51.77 crore and used the cash for a flamboyant lifestyle.

In its prosecution complaint, the central agency claimed that Reddy, in his own admission, has said that his monthly expenditure was of Rs 5 lakh, while he splurged around Rs 1 crore on festivals. This, the ED said, showed how illicit cash was used for luxury consumption.

It further claimed that Reddy routed illicit cash through friends and close family members. Vishal Damani, his close associate, handled large sums and bought expensive devices like iPhones renewed insurance with the money for Reddy, as per the probe.

Damani also delivered packages containing Rs 25 lakh to Rs 30 lakh at the behest of the accused, alleged the agency, adding that in a similar manner, Reddy’s other aides booked hotels, air tickets and spent money on legal affairs.

Damani, in his statement, said that the cash was also frequently used to supply wine and whisky to Reddy. The tainted funds were also used for buying foreign currencies as well as tickets for cricket matches and concerts for Reddy and his relatives, the ED said, quoting Damani.

The probe revealed that Reddy brazenly demanded vehicles for his sons. “This mode of integration translated illegal cash into tangible lifestyle assets while maintaining plausible deniability through third-party financing arrangements,” the ED said.

The agency claimed that large sums were also spent on renovating the household and office. To corroborate the accusation, the ED pointed out that an architect, Paramieet, renovated Reddy’s flat in Vasai. The total expenses came to Rs 45 lakh, which is disproportionate for a flat renovation, the ED argued.