Mr Parab has been questioned by the ED in the past in another money laundering case (File)
Multiple locations in Maharashtra linked to state transport minister Anil Parab were raided this morning by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) as part of a money-laundering probe relating to alleged irregularities in a land deal.
The searches are being conducted at seven locations across Pune, Mumbai and Dapoli, including Mr Parab's residence, after the probe agency filed a fresh case against the Shiv Sena leader under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The ED action against the minister pertains to the allegations that Mr Parab had purchased a piece of land in Dapoli in Ratnagiri district for Rs 1 crore in 2017, but it was registered in 2019.
It is alleged that the land was subsequently sold to a Mumbai-based cable operator Sadanand Kadam in 2020 for Rs 1.10 crore, and between 2017-2020, a resort was constructed on the land.
An Income Tax Department investigation earlier had alleged that the construction of the resort started in 2017 and over Rs 6 crore was spent on it.
Mr Parab is the second Shiv Sena leader to come under the radar of the Enforcement Directorate in the last 24 hours after Yashwant Jadhav. The probe agency yesterday issued summons to Shiv Sena leader and former chairman of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) standing committee, Yashwant Jadhav, in connection with the alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
The ED had earlier arrested Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leaders Nawab Malik and Anil Deshmukh in different money laundering cases. While Mr Malik was arrested this year in February, Anil Deshmukh was taken into custody in November 2021.
Shiv Sena and the NCP allege that their leaders are being targetted by the central probe agencies, at the behest of the BJP-led government at the centre.
