Ram temple land purchase a fit case for CBI, ED probe: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut
Mumbai: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Friday said the alleged financial irregularities in the purchase of land by the Ram temple trust in Ayodhya was a fit case for probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as well as the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
He said the BJP's national executive should pass a resolution to demand investigation by these agencies in the land case.
Raut was responding to reporters' query on the ED's searches at former state home minister Anil Deshmukh's premises in Nagpur and Mumbai on Friday as part of a money-laundering probe against him.
Hitting out at the Maharashtra unit of the BJP for passing a resolution in its executive demanding CBI and ED probe against Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Shiv Sena minister Anil Parab, Raut said, Are the CBI and the ED your party workers or members of the IT cell?
The Rajya Sabha member accused the BJP of lowering the importance of the central investigating agencies - CBI and ED - by using them for targeting political rivals .
It is not right to misuse the central investigating agencies. This should stop. It is understandable if the agencies probe cases of national security, loss to national treasury, money laundering. But why are you maligning the image of these agencies? Raut asked.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government will complete two years in office this year, he said, adding that it would remain stable for another three years.
Such tactics to destablise the government will not work, he said.
Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in Pune, state Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil, said, "The matter related to Anil Deshmukh is sub-judice and it will not be appropriate to comment on the ED action against him."
Replying to a question, he said it was very strange that the ED searches come a day after the state BJP passed a resolution demanding CBI and ED probe against Ajit Pawar and Anil Parab.
This is the time to focus only on COVID-19. But BJP is doing wrong things at wrong time," he said.
In Nagpur, NCP workers protested against the ED by holding a demonstration outside Deshmukh's residence. NCP workers, led by the party's city unit chief Duneshwar Pethe, raised slogans against the central government, terming it as autocratic .
Talking to reporters, Pethe alleged that the central government was misusing the CBI and the ED and maligning the MVA government.
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We received request; will decide soon whether to support TVK: Thirumavalavan
Chennai (PTI): VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan on Thursday said that his party received a request from TVK for support and the high-level committee of his party will decide whether to support the Vijay-led party to form the government.
The TVK won 108 seats in the 234-member Assembly and emerged as the single largest party. Vijay will have to resign from one of the two constituencies he has won.
Though the Congress party, which has five MLAs, has extended support to TVK, the actor-politician-led party was still short of as many seats to touch the magic number of 118, the majority mark in the 234-member House.
"We received the request letter from TVK. We are thankful for that. We have not ignored his (Vijay's) request. We have a procedure. Therefore, our party's high-level committee will decide soon. We are going to discuss the merits and demerits of our position," the VCK leader told reporters here.
With regard to the delay in the governor's call to the TVK, which is the single largest party, to form the government, Thirumavalavan requested the governor to invite Vijay to form the government. "It is a constitutional right and people's verdict," he added.
Asserting that the governor cannot say that Vijay should hold 118 MLAs' support now itself to form the government, he said that after taking over power, Vijay has to prove an absolute majority only on the floor of the Assembly.
