BJP Leader, His Son Accused Of Bungling INS Vikrant Funds; Case Registered
NDTV
Kirit Somaiya INS Vikrant Case: The case against BJP leader Kirit Somaiya and his son Neil was filed based on a complaint lodged by a 53-year-old former Army personnel.
Mumbai police have registered a case of cheating against BJP leader Kirit Somaiya and his son Neil for alleged misappropriation of over Rs 57 crore funds collected to save aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, an official said on Thursday.
The case against them was filed based on a complaint lodged by a 53-year-old former Army personnel on Wednesday evening at the Trombay police station in suburban Mankhurd, he said.
Commissioned in 1961, INS Vikrant, a Majestic-class aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy, had played a key role in enforcing the naval blockade of East Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971. It was decommissioned in 1997. In January 2014, the ship was sold through an online auction and scrapped in November that year.
The complainant said that Kirit Somaiya had started a campaign to raise funds for INS Vikrant. He said that he had given donations to Kirit Somaiya for saving the ship and the BJP leader had collected more than Rs 57 crore for the purpose. However, instead of depositing the amount to the Maharashtra governor's secretary office, he misappropriated the funds.