The Enforcement Directorate and other probe agencies are being used to “stifle” each voice raised against the BJP and the Centre and hence, the Supreme Court and the Bombay High Court should intervene to stop the “increasing misuse” of these government entities, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said on Thursday.
According to a statement, Mr Patole likened the Centre's “misuse” of the probe agencies to “undeclared Emergency”.
He made the comments after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches on Thursday at the house of a Nagpur-based lawyer, Satish Uke, who has filed several petitions against senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis in the last few years.
Mr Uke is also representing Patole, who has filed a Rs 500-crore defamation suit in a civil court here against IPS officer and former state intelligence chief Rashmi Shukla and others for alleged illegal tapping of his phone.
Mr Patole said he was “ready to welcome” the ED if it is going to act next against him.
“The agencies like ED are being used to stifle each voice raised against the BJP and the Centre. This is the Centre's undeclared Emergency. The Supreme Court and the Bombay High Court should intervene to ensure the democratic set up remains intact and the misuse of central probe agencies is stopped,” the statement quoted Mr Patole as saying.
The Congress MLA, whose party is an ally of the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition in the state, said Mr Uke is representing him in the defamation suit and added the action has been taken “to muzzle” the lawyer's voice.
The MPCC president further alleged “fake cases” are being registered through agencies like the ED against anyone who speaks against the BJP-led government at the Centre.
Mr Patole said the Enforcemnt Directorate was set up to act in cases of international money laundering for drugs and terror funding, among other crimes, but the agency has "deviated" from the goal for which it was formed.
He claimed central agencies have become “puppets” in the hands of the Union government.
“If the ED is going to act next against me, I am ready to welcome (it). This is the time to fight together against the BJP's pressure tactics,” he added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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