NCP chief Sharad Pawar cancels his visit to ED office

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar cancelled his visit to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in South Mumbai yesterday following a stir with the announcement that he would voluntarily visit the office.

The ED has named Sharad Pawar in a money-laundering case. Pawar decided not to go to the ED office after Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Barve met him and requested him to reconsider his plan.

The ED too had conveyed to him that his presence was not required for now. Expecting protests by NCP workers, the police had imposed prohibitory orders in south Mumbai where the ED's office is located.

The former Maharashtra Chief Minister said, he does not want any of his actions to cause inconvenience to common people. The 79-year-old politician said that he was not associated with the bank either as member or director. He thanked Rahul Gandhi, Dr Manmohan Singh and other senior leaders and the Shiv Sena too for supporting him. He also questioned the timing of the ED



case.

Meanwhile, State BJP Chief Chandrakant Patil denied that the ED was acting at the government's behest. The inquiry in the MSCB scam was launched in 2010 when Congress and NCP were in power in the state, he pointed out.

Maharashtra NCP chief Jayant Patil accused the BJP-led Government of targeting Pawar after realizing that his campaign rallies were receiving a huge response.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tweeted that Pawar was the latest Opposition leader to be targeted by the government. The Shiv Sena, a BJP ally, also defended Pawar saying his name is not even mentioned in the complaint.

Just because some of his aides are involved, he is being called the kingpin, said Sena MP Sanjay Raut. Two days ago, Pawar, a former Union Minister, made a dramatic announcement that he would visit the ED office -- though not summoned -- on Friday after the agency disclosed that his name figures in the MSCB case.