<p>Former Maharashtra home minister and senior NCP leader Anil Deshmukh was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday night.</p>.<p>Deshmukh (72) is close to NCP founder-president Sharad Pawar and party’s general secretary Praful Patel.</p>.<p>Deshmukh, who had evaded five summons earlier, was accompanied by lawyers when he entered the ED office at Ballard Estate.</p>.<p>The ED said Deshmukh has been arrested as per the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).</p>.<p>They claimed the senior NCP leader was evasive during questioning and the agency will seek his custody after they produce him before a local court here on Tuesday.</p>.<p>Deshmukh entered the ED office before noon and was arrested around midnight.</p>.<p>The senior politician from Vidarbha had to resign from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government after former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh - who is now untraceable - alleged that the minister has fixed a Rs 100 crore per month collection target for now dismissed assistant police inspector Sachin Vaze.</p>.<p>Before Deshmukh entered the ED office, he released a press statement and a video statement from his Twitter handle.</p>.<p>"When I got summons from the ED, I was accused of not cooperating with the probe agency. The media has been wrongly reporting that I have been evading summons, but I want to make it clear that whenever I was asked to appear, I told the probe agency that the matter is in the Bombay High Court and Supreme Court and to wait for the outcome,” Deshmukh said.</p>.<p>"I clearly said that once the decision is out, I will be at the ED office. When my office and my homes were raised, my family and staff cooperated with them. I also got two summons from CBI... whenever I got summons I went to CBI office and got my statement recorded. Even today, my case is pending in the Supreme Court. But today I have presented myself in the ED office,” he added.</p>.<p>It may be mentioned that Vaze has been arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the twin cases of planting of a gelatin sticks-laden Mahindra Scorpio near Antilia, the residence of Reliance Industries Ltd chairman Mukesh Ambani, and the murder of the SUV owner Mansukh Hiren, and faces murder and terror charges.</p>.<p>Deshmukh, his wife Aarti Deshmukh and their son Hrishikesh Deshmukh had been repeatedly summoned by ED.</p>.<p>It may be mentioned that the ED had arrested Deshmukh’s personal secretary Sanjeev Palande and personal assistant Kundan Shinde - and they have been chargesheeted by the ED, which has also attached properties to the tune of Rs 4.20 crore which are linked to Deshmukh and his family.</p>.<p><em>With PTI inputs.</em></p>.<p><strong>Watch latest videos by DH here:</strong></p>
<p>Former Maharashtra home minister and senior NCP leader Anil Deshmukh was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday night.</p>.<p>Deshmukh (72) is close to NCP founder-president Sharad Pawar and party’s general secretary Praful Patel.</p>.<p>Deshmukh, who had evaded five summons earlier, was accompanied by lawyers when he entered the ED office at Ballard Estate.</p>.<p>The ED said Deshmukh has been arrested as per the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).</p>.<p>They claimed the senior NCP leader was evasive during questioning and the agency will seek his custody after they produce him before a local court here on Tuesday.</p>.<p>Deshmukh entered the ED office before noon and was arrested around midnight.</p>.<p>The senior politician from Vidarbha had to resign from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government after former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh - who is now untraceable - alleged that the minister has fixed a Rs 100 crore per month collection target for now dismissed assistant police inspector Sachin Vaze.</p>.<p>Before Deshmukh entered the ED office, he released a press statement and a video statement from his Twitter handle.</p>.<p>"When I got summons from the ED, I was accused of not cooperating with the probe agency. The media has been wrongly reporting that I have been evading summons, but I want to make it clear that whenever I was asked to appear, I told the probe agency that the matter is in the Bombay High Court and Supreme Court and to wait for the outcome,” Deshmukh said.</p>.<p>"I clearly said that once the decision is out, I will be at the ED office. When my office and my homes were raised, my family and staff cooperated with them. I also got two summons from CBI... whenever I got summons I went to CBI office and got my statement recorded. Even today, my case is pending in the Supreme Court. But today I have presented myself in the ED office,” he added.</p>.<p>It may be mentioned that Vaze has been arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the twin cases of planting of a gelatin sticks-laden Mahindra Scorpio near Antilia, the residence of Reliance Industries Ltd chairman Mukesh Ambani, and the murder of the SUV owner Mansukh Hiren, and faces murder and terror charges.</p>.<p>Deshmukh, his wife Aarti Deshmukh and their son Hrishikesh Deshmukh had been repeatedly summoned by ED.</p>.<p>It may be mentioned that the ED had arrested Deshmukh’s personal secretary Sanjeev Palande and personal assistant Kundan Shinde - and they have been chargesheeted by the ED, which has also attached properties to the tune of Rs 4.20 crore which are linked to Deshmukh and his family.</p>.<p><em>With PTI inputs.</em></p>.<p><strong>Watch latest videos by DH here:</strong></p>