Sharad Pawar "Trying To Save" Maharashtra Government: Devendra Fadnavis

BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis contested Mr Pawar's assertion that neither chief minister Uddhav Thackeray nor Anil Deshmukh were responsible for reinstating controversial police officer Sachin Waze in the Mumbai police force last year.

Senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis today said Nationalist Congress chief (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar was trying to save the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in view of allegations of corruption levelled by former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh against state Home Minister Anil Deshmukh. Mr Fadnavis contested Mr Pawar's assertion that neither chief minister Uddhav Thackeray nor Anil Deshmukh were responsible for reinstating controversial police officer Sachin Waze in the Mumbai police force last year. Days after he was shunted as Mumbai police commissioner, former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh wrote a letter to the chief minister claiming Anil Deshmukh, a senior NCP leader, had asked Sachin Waze and other police officers to collect Rs 100 crore monthly from bars and hotels in Mumbai. "Waze was given important cases and also got key posts in the police department. Is it possible without the knowledge of the chief minister and the home minister?" Mr Fadnavis questioned.