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Maharashtra

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut sent to ED custody till Thursday (Ld)

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A special court here on Monday sent Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut to the custody of Enforcement Directorate for 3 days, till Thursday, in a money laundering case arising out of the Patra Chawl land scam.

Special PMLA court judge M.G. Deshpande pronounced the order as Raut was produced before it, hours after he was arrested by the ED here early this morning.

While ED’s special counsel Hiten Venegaonkar sought 8 days custody, Raut’s lawyer, senior counsel Ashok Mundargi opposed it on various grounds including the health problems of his client who was a cardiac patient.

Venegaonkar argued that Raut was not cooperating with the investigations and hence his custodial interrogation was necessary and the agency wanted to probe other aspects of the Patra Chawl scam and related issues.

He contended that co-accused Pravin Raut was merely a front-man and all deals pertaining to the Patra Chawl scam were perpetrated by Sanjay Raut.

Opposing the ED’s contentions, Mundargi said that Raut’s arrest was politically motivated and pleaded for minimum custody for his client.

“He is a patient, suffering from heart-related issues and has undergone surgery, and all medical papers pertaining to this have been submitted to the court,” he said.

Venegaonkar claimed that Pravin Raut has received Rs 112 crore from HDIL in which Rs 1.6 crore was transferred to Sanjay Raut, which needs to be probed.

He also argued that Pravin Raut acted as the front-man of Sanjay Raut even in the purchase of lands in Alibaug, and Raigad, and the duo were close to each other and went on several foreign tours, etc.

The ED further alleged that Raut had threatened one of the witnesses (a woman), appeared once for probe and skipped two other summonses, and he was not cooperating with the investigators.

In response, Mundargi said that the allegations listed in the remand application are vague and stem from a political vendetta as the case dates back to 2018 but is being raised now owing to the changed political scenario.

On the ED’s contentions of non-cooperation, Mundargi said Raut had already informed the ED that he was involved in elections, he was in New Delhi, and not running away from the probe as he was attending Parliament.

After hearing both sides, Special Judge Deshpande turned down the ED’s plea for 8 days custody, and noted that custody till August 4 would be sufficient.

“I am of the opinion that such a long custody of 8 days is not warranted… I am of the opinion that accused (Raut) is remanded to ED custody up to August 4 that will suffice for investigations,” he said.

Taking cognisance of Raut’s heart disease and his surgery, the court said that during custody, he may be given some rest instead of interrogating him till late night.

It has also allowed Raut to meet his legal team in the mornings and the ED will not interrogate him after 10 p.m. in view of his health status.

The ED is probing alleged money-laundering that was detected in the redevelopment of the Patra Chawl by HDIL subsidiary, Guru Ashish Constructions Pvt Ltd.

While Pravin Raut, an ex-Director in the Guru Ashish Construction Pvt Ltd, was arrested earlier, the ED also attached his properties and assets belonging to Sanjay Raut’s wife Varsha, valued at over Rs 11 crore, in April.

On July 1, the ED had summoned and questioned Sanjay Raut for over 10 hours and then called him again on three occasions, but he had sought time till August 7.

The ED raided Raut’s Bhandup bungalow at dawn on July 31, and he was questioned for over nine hours.

Later, he was taken under detention to the agency offices where he was again grilled for over 7 hours before he was placed under arrest.

Maharashtra

Navi Mumbai International Airport: 94% Work Completed, Target Set For Launch On September 30, Says Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis

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Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited and inspected the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) on Saturday, July 12. He was accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Forest Minister Ganesh Naik during the site visit. The inspection aimed to assess the overall progress of the airport’s construction.

Addressing the media following the inspection, Fadnavis stated, “Today, we came here to review the progress of the airport. We saw a detailed presentation on the work’s advancement from the runway to the terminal building, and got all the information regarding it. Approximately 94 per cent of the physical progress is complete,”

The chief minister mentioned that the runway is fully constructed, while interior work inside the terminal is still in progress. Work on the terminal’s exterior, including the façade and ceiling, is being expedited, with all other construction activities continuing at a steady pace.

He also observed the advanced baggage-handling system at the airport. “We saw the baggage-handling system, which is the most efficient, in which the barcode of the baggage can be read through 360-degree scanning systems, ensuring it reaches the right place. We have asked the authorities that the baggage claim system in this airport should be the fastest not only in the country but in the entire world, and efforts are being made in that direction,” Fadnavis said, as reported.

The airport, once operational with two runways, will have the capacity to handle nine crore passengers annually. Highlighting the scale of the project, Fadnavis mentioned that NMIA will be many times bigger than the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai.

CM also mentioned that, “This will be the most modern airport in the country. As we have to seek the appointment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (for the project launch), we have set the target of September 30 before them. It is an ambitious target.”

He added, “Currently, 13,000 to 14,000 workers are involved in the work daily, and we have asked the authorities to increase their strength by one-and-a-half times or double by September 30, because other licences are complete, but for commercial operations, all work has to be finished.”

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Maharashtra

Demand for apology from Sanjay Raut, otherwise defamation case will be filed, Sanjay Shirsat called the viral video a morphed video

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Mumbai: Mumbai Shiv Sena UBT leader and MP had shared a video of Shiv Sena Shinde Sena minister Sanjay Shirsat on social media. Now Sanjay Shirsat has announced to file a defamation case against Sanjay Raut. Along with this, a criminal case will also be registered. Sanjay Shirsat has claimed that the video that has been released has been tampered with and it is an attempt to defame him. Therefore, now he will not sit silent in this matter. He will teach Sanjay Raut a lesson. Therefore, along with sending a notice to Minister Sanjay Raut, an apology has also been demanded. If an apology is not made, a criminal and defamation case will be registered. Sanjay Shirsat had clarified in this regard that the video that has been released is of his residence and he is resting sitting on his bed, but there is no bag full of money. Bag who is He told the journalists that his residence is open to everyone and no permission or leave is required to meet me, according to the principle of Matoshree, I am a common worker and servant of the people, so anyone can come to my house. He said that someone must have made the video viral, he is unaware of how the video went viral. Sanjay Shirsat has now decided to file a defamation case against Sanjay Raut. After Sanjay Shirsat’s video went viral, there was a political uproar and after that Sanjay Shirsat also gave clarification on it. Now the minister has claimed to file a case.

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Crime

Maloni resident youth arrested for selling pistol in Mumbai

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Police in Maloni area of Mumbai have claimed to have arrested a person with an illegal revolver. The said person was roaming around with an unlicensed weapon and had a pistol pointed at his back. On receiving information, the police found a man aged between 32 and 37 years near Desai Maidan, who had a pistol pointed at his back. Police have recovered a black pistol made in India and four live cartridges from him. He had brought the pistol here from the village with the intention of selling it. The price of the pistol is said to be Rs 75,000 and the price of four cartridges is Rs 4,000. Police have arrested the accused, identified as 35-year-old Arif Ismail Shah. He is a resident of Ratnagiri. Police have registered a case against him under the Arms Act and are investigating further. During investigation, it was found that he had brought this pistol from Goa and had come here to sell it. This information was given by ACP Neeta Padvi of Mumbai Police.

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