Cong leader Harish Rawat sees 'vendetta' in ED notice to Sharad Pawar

The ED notice to NCP chief Sharad Pawar in connection with Rs 5,000 crore Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank (MSCB) scam proves that investigative agencies would be used against those who do not agree to the views of the government, said Congress leader Harish Rawat on Friday.

New Delhi [India], Sept 27 : The ED notice to NCP chief Sharad Pawar in connection with Rs 5,000 crore Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank (MSCB) scam proves that investigative agencies would be used against those who do not agree to the views of the government, said Congress leader Harish Rawat on Friday.

"Sharad ji, on the advice of local police, didn't go to the ED today. The notice to Sharad Pawar proves that those who do not agree will be suppressed by the ED, the Income Tax or the CBI," Rawat told here.

Earlier in the day, the NCP chief skipped his visit to the ED office in connection with the case on the request of the Mumbai Commissioner of Police and the Joint Commissioner.

"I will not visit the Enforcement Directorate office for now. Mumbai Commissioner of Police and Joint Commissioner met me. They requested me not to go so that the law and order situation remains under control," said Pawar who along with party leader Ajit Pawar and others have been named in an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) in MSCB scam case.

Rawat, also a former Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, said the investigative agencies that are responsible to guard the interests of the country are now being used for vindictive action by the BJP.

"I believe the people of Maharashtra will stand in support of Sharad Pawar and they will give a response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intention," added he.

On the Shiv Sena's reaction to the ED notice for Pawar, Rawat said: "As far as the BJP is concerned, they are consolidating non-Maratha vote bank. Shiv Sena was working together with them. The first shock to Pawar's notice is observed by the Shiv Sena because they think the support with which they were working with the BJP should not backfire."

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has denied Pawar's involvement in the MSCB scam, saying "the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief was not in power when the scam took place."

The NCP and the Congress have announced a seat-sharing agreement for Maharashtra polls, scheduled for October 21 where both parties would be contesting on 125 seats each in 288-member Assembly.

( With inputs from ANI )