ED grills AAP chief, others in money laundering case

PANAJI
AAP Goa President, Amit Palekar and his party colleague Ramrao Wagh; ex-BJP leader and businessman Dattaprasad Naik and President of the Bhandari Samaj Ashok Naik were grilled for 3-5 hours by Enforcement Directorate (ED) Goa sleuths on Thursday in connection with the alleged violation of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act linked to the Excise scam.

Palekar, who joined the investigation post 11:30 am underwent a second round of questioning after a lunch break which is when he was asked to get ‘some data.’

“I have joined the investigation. I am answering whatever questions they (ED officials) are asking me. They are doing their job, and I will do mine as a responsible citizen. They have asked me to submit some data, which I will do,” Palekar told the waiting journalists, after his initial questioning. He however refused to divulge details sought by ED but returned post lunch with documents in hand.

Several AAP leaders including MLAs Venzy Viegas and Cruz Silva camped outside the ED office till the questioning concluded.

Viegas accused the government of abusing its power to silence the party. “ED is being misused, but we will fight. Targeting Bahujan Samaj and minority leaders clearly indicates the government is all out to harass minorities,” he said. The AAP leaders further alleged that the government has orchestrated the situation to divert attention from the electoral bond issue. “INDIA bloc can only save democracy,” he said.

Wagh, who emerged from the ED office earlier than others, revealed he was questioned about expenses during his 2022 general assembly election campaigning. Wagh had contested from St Andre constituency on AAP ticket but lost to the current MLA. The other two leaders declined to comment on the summons or the interrogation.

The AAP leaders had earlier raised apprehensions that those called for questioning could be taken into custody despite no proof against them. While all the four were sent back after the questioning, it is not known if they are asked to reappear.

The ED in Delhi has claimed that AAP utilised “proceeds of crime” amounting to approximately Rs 45 crore in its 2022 Goa assembly poll campaign, sourced from the Rs 100 crore bribe allegedly provided by South Group, which purportedly involved Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal is already in their custody over the liquor policy scam allegations.