New Delhi: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Monday said that he is not afraid of anyone amid the summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to his wife Varsha Raut.
He said that step taken by ED was an “act of cowardice” and many political leaders are being targeted by the investigative agency.
The ED has summoned his wife regarding the PMC Bank illegal tax avoidance case on December 29. The summons for questioning has been given to her under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), authorities said.
Shiv Sena MP was quoted as saying by news agency ANI, “Targeting women of a household is an act of cowardice. We are not scared of anyone and will respond accordingly. ED needed some papers and we have submitted them in time.”
Sanjay Raut stated about ED action, reflected “frustration” of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) against him, attributable to his role in the development of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government a year ago and in light of the fact that he didn’t yield to the pressure to make it temperamental, news agency PTI reported.
He further said, “In the last one year, Sharad Pawar, Eknath Khadse, and Pratap Sarnaik got notices and now you all are discussing my name. All these people are crucial for government formation in Maharashtra. The Shiv Sena leader also dubbed the notices as “pieces of paper, nothing else.”
He alleged that ED has taken action after 10 years. He said his family is from a middle-class background and his wife is a teacher. “We are middle-class people. My wife had taken a loan from a friend 10 years ago to purchase a house. Details have been given to the income tax (department) and also mentioned in my Rajya Sabha affidavit. The ED woke up to this deal after ten years.”
Sanjay Raut also indicated that few BJP leaders speaking against him since December 27 used to frequent the ED office (in south Mumbai) and “have taken away some papers from the office.”