Waze's letter 'BJP's plan to defame Maharashtra ministers', says Anil Parab

Soon after suspended Mumbai police officer Sachin Vaze opened up a Pandora's Box by accusing former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Anil Parab of pressuring him to extort money, Parab alleged BJP behind the letter and claimed that they are trying to defame Maharashtra ministers.

Mumbai:Maharashtra Minister Anil Parab on Wednesday denied an extortion charge against him in suspended Mumbai Police officer Sachin Waze's letter to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). He also alleged that BJP is behind the letter and they are trying to defame Maharashtra ministers.

The statement comes after Vaze has opened up a Pandora's Box by accusing former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Anil Parab of pressuring him to extort money from the contractors of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), and illegal tobacco factories and bars in the city.

In the handwritten letter to the Special NIA Court dated April 3, Waze has claimed that NCP chief Sharad Pawar was against his reinstatement into Mumbai Police in 2020 and wanted it to be revoked, 16 years after he was suspended in March 2004. However, senior officials of the NIA remained tightlipped on the authenticity of Vaze's letter.

Reacting to the letter, Parab, a Shiv Sena leader, said, "For the last two days, BJP workers were saying Anil Parab's name will surface and he will have to resign. How did they know Sachin Waze will give a letter? It's clear that there's a plan of defaming Maharashtra ministers." The Minister said that he is ready to face any probe into the allegations.
Read: Mumbai court extends Sachin Vaze's NIA custody till April 7

He said, "Why didn't Sachin Waze talk about it earlier? He didn't mention Anil Parab earlier. Suddenly, he writes a letter. It means that he has been made to do all this, to defame the government. I am ready for any kind of inquiry. I am even ready for a narco test."

Waze, who is being probed by the NIA in the Antilia bomb scare, was produced by the agency for further custody when he attempted to submit this letter. The court, however, told him to follow due process and did not accept it.

Claims made by Vaze in the letter

"In July-August 2020, I was called by Minister Anil Parab at his official bungalow... At the meeting, Parab asked me to look into the complaint under preliminary inquiry and bring the trustees of the SBUT to him for negotiations about the inquiry. He also insisted to initiate primary talks to get Rs 50 crore from SBUT in order to close the said enquiry. I had expressed my inability to do any such thing as I do not know anybody from SBUT and also I did not have any control over the inquiry," Waze told the NIA in his letter.

Vaze further claimed that Parab called him again in January 2021 and asked him to look into an inquiry against some contractors listed in the BMC and collect Rs 2 crore each from them.

With inputs from agencies