"Didn't Collect Money From Bar Owners, Didn't Pay Extortion Money To Deshmukh": Sachin Waze To Chandiwal Commission

Dismissed Mumbai cop Sachin Waze made startling revelations during his cross-examination before the Chandiwal Judicial Commission on Tuesday. Waze denied collecting any money from bar owners or passing on the extortion money to former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh or his staff. Waze also did not "recollect" if either Deshmukh or anyone of his staff had asked him to collect money from bar owners in the city. Waze's statements contradict claims made by the former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh in his letter to the Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on March 20, 2021. Singh alleged that Deshmukh had asked dismissed cop Sachin Waze and two other police officers to illegally collect money from bar owners every month and give a Rs. 100 crore cut out of it to him. Eventually, the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) began investigating allegations against Deshmukh. In a statement to the ED, Waze alleged that he had handed over at least Rs. 4.7 crore of the illegal gratification collected from bar owners between December 2020- February 2021 to members of Deshmukh's staff in two instalments. Anil Deshmukh resigned as the Home Minister and is presently in the ED's custody pursuant to these allegations. On Tuesday, Waze was cross-examined by Deshmukh's lawyer Girish Kulkarni before Retd. Justice KU Chandiwal. The deposition on Tuesday, comes two weeks after Waze and Singh allegedly interacted at the Commission in a closed-door meeting. In response to whether Waze had any occasion to make payments to Deshmukh, the former cop replied in the negative. Kulkarni then suggested to Waze that he hadn't paid any money to Kundan Shinde, in the latter's capacity as Deshmukh's staff or otherwise. "I don't recollect," came the response. Waze accepted that at no point did he offer Shinde money, neither was there any demand from Deshmukh, his staff or the home department. "There was no demand from any official." "Did anybody from Shri Deshmukh's office or Shri Deshmukh ask you to collect money form bars or bar owners?," asked Kulkarni, "I don't remember," came Waze's response. Waze also denied that he had any occasion to collect money from bar owners or those associated with the business. He agreed that since he didn't collect money, he had no occasion of making any offer or giving money to Deshmukh's staff. Waze also responded in negative when asked whether there was any interference from the home department or any political party in cases he was probing during his stint at the Mumbai Police's Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU). In his statement before ED, Waze had also alleged that Deshmukh had asked him to collect money from bar and hotel owners. And that Deshmukh would instruct him on high-profile investigations. Soon after Singh sent his letter to the CM, the Maharashtra Government constituted a one-member high-level judicial inquiry commission to ascertain the veracity of the allegations made in his letter. The Commission's proceedings were then adjourned to December 21 for Waze's further cross-examination by Deshmukh. A fine of Rs. 15,000 was also imposed on Deshmukh. Waze's cross-examination before the Commission began on November 23, 2021. Singh had earlier refused to depose before the Commission stating that his allegations against Deshmukh were based on hearsay and therefore may not have significant evidentiary value even if he deposed. On Monday, Waze told the Commission that he wasn't aware if television anchor Arnab Goswami's arrest by his team in November 2020 for allegedly abetting the suicide of interior designer Anvay Naik in 2018, had created any controversy pertaining to allegations of illegal detention. He also did not remember if he had personally briefed Singh before the press conference in which Republic TV in the TRP scam in October, 2020. While the Mumbai Police received flak for the manner of its investigation against Goswami and Republic TV in the case, Waze accepted that Singh had given him and at least one other officer appreciation letters for their investigation.

"Didn't Collect Money From Bar Owners, Didn't Pay Extortion Money To Deshmukh": Sachin Waze To Chandiwal Commission

Sharmeen Hakim

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