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Time of India
12-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
I have done no wrong, being targeted politically: Rohit Pawar on being named accused in MSCB 'scam'
After the Enforcement Directorate (ED) named him as an accused in the alleged Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam, NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar on Saturday claimed he has not done anything wrong and that he was being targeted with political motives. Pawar said he was being singled out despite 97 others being named in the FIR, and added that since the matter is now in the court, he will fight out the case legally and win it. The ED named Pawar, who represents the Karjat-Jamkhed assembly constituency in Ahilyanagar district, as an accused in the chargesheet, submitted in a special court in Mumbai recently, in the alleged MSCB scam . by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Top 25 Most Beautiful Women In The World Articles Vally Undo The MSCB money laundering case stems from an August 2019 FIR of the Mumbai police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW), alleging fraudulent sale of SSKs (Sahakari Sakhar Kharkhana or cooperative sugar mills) by the then officers and directors of the MSCB at throwaway prices to their relatives/private persons without following the due procedure. The Kannad SSK in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar was purchased by Baramati Agro Ltd, which is a company of Pawar. Live Events The probe agency has alleged that MSCB, in order to recover an outstanding loan of Rs 80.56 crore of Kannad SSK Limited took possession of all its assets on July 13, 2009 under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act. The MSCB then conducted an auction on August 30, 2012 of Kannad SSK by fixing a "very low" reserve price based on a questionable valuation report. Apart from Baramati Agro, two other parties entered the bidding process. The bidder with the highest bid was technically disqualified on flimsy grounds, whereas the other bidder was already a close business associate of Baramati Agro with no financial capacity or experience of running a sugar unit, the ED said. Talking to reporters here, Pawar said, "When the ED registered the FIR, it named 97 individuals, including some political leaders. My name was not there. Before Baramati Agro purchased the sugar mill, the unit was under an administrator's control as there was no properly elected board of directors. It was the administrator who floated the tender, which Baramati Agro later secured through due process." During the probe, the ED kept all 97 people aside and started a probe against him, he added. "In 2024, I was called to the ED office twice for questioning. I was questioned for 12 hours, I gave all the information to ED officers. They probed everything. They even visited the mill. Though the ED has taken the symbolic possession of the mill, it is still run by me. No farmer will face any issue," he said. Of the 97 persons named in the FIR, many are now associated with the BJP, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena or Ajit Pawar's NCP, he claimed. "There is an attempt to single me out and take action against me by ED. This looks political but I will fight this battle and win it," he said. When asked why he believes he was targeted, Pawar said, "If you observe, I am the only one who is actively raising voice against the government in the current monsoon session of the legislature." Now that the chargesheet has been filed, the matter lies in the judiciary's hands, he said. "We were waiting for the chargesheet to be filed. Now that it has been filed, we trust the judicial process and are confident of getting justice. I am absolutely convinced that I have done nothing wrong. I am not afraid. We are not among those who run away. We will fight this battle. We are Marathi people - we do not bow before Delhi," he asserted. Calling it a battle of ideology, Pawar said, "Others may have run away, but I will stand and fight till the end."
United News of India
12-07-2025
- Business
- United News of India
ED files supplementary chargesheet against MLA in MSCB laundering case
Mumbai, July 12 ( UNI) Troubles mounted for NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) MLA Rohit Pawar as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a supplementary chargesheet against him in connection with the Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam. The chargesheet has been submitted under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), in a special court in Mumbai. The court has yet to take cognizance of the supplementary chargesheet. The development is seen as a major blow to the Pawar family, a prominent political dynasty in Maharashtra. Before filing the chargesheet, the ED had already attached assets worth over rupees 50 crore belonging to Rohit Pawar's company, Baramati Agro. In January 2023, the ED conducted raids at several locations, including premises linked to Baramati Agro. Subsequently, Rohit Pawar, who represents the Karjat-Jamkhed constituency, was summoned to the ED's Mumbai office for questioning. In March 2023, the ED provisionally attached assets worth Rs 50.20 crore, which included 161.30 acres of land in Kannad (Aurangabad district), a sugar factory, machinery, and buildings. The ED alleges that the properties originally belonged to Kannad Cooperative Sugar Factory Ltd. (Kannad SSK) and were acquired by Baramati Agro through a "fraudulent auction process." The agency contends that these properties represent "proceeds of crime" and that the acquisition violates anti-money laundering laws. UNI SP PRS
India Today
11-07-2025
- Politics
- India Today
ED files chargesheet against MLA Rohit Pawar in Maharashtra Co-op Bank case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a supplementary chargesheet against Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction) MLA Rohit Pawar and a few others in the Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam chargesheet, submitted in the Special Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) Court, comes months after the ED attached assets worth over Rs 50 crore belonging to Pawar's firm, Baramati Agro. As per sources, the court is yet to take cognisance of the ED had earlier conducted searches at Rohit Pawar's premises, including Baramati Agro and other linked locations, in January last year. Following the raids, Pawar, MLA from Karjat-Jamkhed, was summoned and questioned at the ED's Mumbai office. In March 2023, the agency provisionally attached assets worth Rs 50.20 crore belonging to Baramati Agro, including 161.30 acres of land, a sugar mill, machinery, and buildings located in Kannad, ED claims that the assets belong to Kannad Sahakari Sakhar Karkhana Limited (Kannad SSK), which Baramati Agro acquired through an allegedly rigged auction. According to the agency, the acquisition violated the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, as the assets are deemed "proceeds of crime".The money laundering probe stems from an FIR filed by the Economic Offences Wing of the Mumbai Police in August 2019 under various IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act FIR alleged that several cooperative sugar mills (SSKs) were sold fraudulently by MSCB officials and directors to their relatives and private entities at throwaway prices, bypassing standard the MSCB took possession of Kannad SSK's assets in 2009 to recover an outstanding loan of Rs 80.56 crore. The bank conducted an auction based on a questionable valuation, setting a low reserve ED claims the auction was manipulated - disqualifying the highest bidder on weak grounds and allowing a close associate of Baramati Agro, with no experience or financial strength, to remain in the has stated that three provisional orders have been issued so far, attaching assets worth Rs 121.47 crore in connection with the case. The agency now maintains that the final confirmation of the attachment has been secured, and the supplementary chargesheet has been filed in the Special PMLA Court.- Ends
