After a thorough search of his Mumbai home on Sunday, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) apprehended Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut in connection with a money laundering investigation. The Sena leader was brought to the agency’s Mumbai office by ED personnel. As a sizable crowd of Sena supporters gathered inside, the Rajya Sabha MP drove away from his residence in his own automobile.
The search operation came after two summonses against Raut were issued by the ED, the most recent of which was on July 27. In connection with alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of a Mumbai “chawl” and related transactions involving his wife and “associates,” Raut was called in by the ED for questioning.
Sanjay 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.
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, has denied any wrongdoing and alleged that he was being targeted due to political vendetta.
