Mumbai: Dismissed police officer Sachin Waze has filed a writ petition before the Bombay High Court seeking release from jail in a corruption case in which he turned approver in June 2022.
Former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh is an accused in the case, and currently out on bail.
A division bench of Justices N R Borkar and Somasekhar Sundaresan on Wednesday issued a notice to the Central Bureau of Investigation which is probing the case and sought its response while scheduling the hearing for June 14.
In his handwritten petition, Waze said the pardon granted to him upon turning approver was not put into effect in its "letter and spirit". Waze, once known as an encounter specialist, said he had an impeccable career as a high-performing police officer but 'certain undue circumstances' led to his prolonged suspension.
"Thereafter, to keep my reinstatement intact, I had to succumb to pressures of Deshmukh, who was then Maharashtra Home Minister and this pressure led inevitably for me to participate in the crime", the petition said.
He cooperated with the investigation and made full disclosure of the circumstances related to the case within his knowledge, yet he continues to languish at Taloja Central Prison in Navi Mumbai, Waze said.
The CBI registered a corruption case against Deshmukh following allegations by former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh that the NCP leader had, after becoming home minister, directed police officials to collect Rs 100 crore per month from restaurants and bars in Mumbai.
Waze is also an accused in a money laundering case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate as well as Antilia bomb scare and the killing of Thane businessman Mansukh Hiran. The former cop was arrested by the NIA in the Antilia bomb scare case in March 2021, and has been behind bars since then.
Published 29 May 2024, 16:44 IST