CBI books former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh for trying to frame BJP leaders

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday booked former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh for allegedly trying to frame BJP leaders in false cases. The case reportedly involves charges that during his tenure as Home Minister Deshmukh exerted pressure on police officials in Jalgaon to take action against BJP leader Girish Mahajan.

Deshmukh rejected the allegations, saying the case was a conspiracy by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The NCP-SP leader is already facing a CBI case for alleged corruption and another case registered by the Enforcement Directorate. 

"Another baseless case has been filed against me by the CBI. This conspiracy has started as Fadnavis has panicked after seeing the people's mandate. I am not scared at all by such threats and pressure," he said, adding that he has vowed to fight against the BJP's "repressive rule". 

People should contemplate how Fadnavis was indulging in "perverse and low-level" politics, Deshmukh said, adding that voters put the BJP in its place in the Lok Sabha elections and now assembly polls were awaited.

Earlier, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, during an interview, said that Uddhav Thackeray had once wanted a case filed against Devendra Fadnavis. Shinde said that he had objected to this but Uddhav said it was necessary as Fadnavis was creating trouble for the MVA government.  

Last month, Anil Deshmukh claimed that Fadnavis had tried to save ex-Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh from arrest by asking him to level allegations against Deshmukh to topple the MVA government. Fadnavis, however, dismissed Deshmukh's claims as lies, but did not elaborate further.

The BJP said it was a strategy to defame Fadnavis, and asked how could a leader who was then in opposition ask a police officer for such a thing.

When the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) was in power in 2021, Deshmukh resigned as home minister after Singh accused him of setting a target to collect Rs 100 crore a month from bars and restaurants. 

(With inputs from PTI)