Param Bir Singh left India with Centre's help, claims Sanjay Raut

Mumbai, Nov 02: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday claimed that IPS officer Param Bir Singh has not absconded but made to move out of the country, which he could not have done without the Centre's help.

Speaking to reporters here, Raut also said former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh was arrested by a central agency based on Singh's allegations, and this was ''very unfortunate and unethical''.

Deshmukh's party NCP shares power with the Shiv Sena and Congress in Maharashtra.

Param Bir Singh is facing investigation in a number of matters, including some extortion cases registered by the Maharashtra Police. Recently, two non-bailable warrants were issued against him in different extortion cases in Mumbai and neighbouring Thane.

Singh was shunted out from the post of Mumbai police commissioner in March this year in the aftermath of the recovery of an SUV with explosives near industrialist Mukesh Ambani's residence in south Mumbai and the arrest of dismissed police officer Sachin Waze in the case.

Singh later accused the then state home minister Anil Deshmukh of corruption.

The Maharashtra government recently told the Bombay High Court that it did not know of Singh's whereabouts.

On Tuesday, Raut said, "When a person serving on a post equivalent to the director general of police moves out of the country, he cannot do so without the support of the Union government. He has not absconded, but made to move out of the country.'' "Based on his (Param Bir Singh's) allegations, the central agencies have arrested former home minister Anil Deshmukh. It is very unfortunate as his arrest is unethical," he said.

Raut said on the basis of allegations, an investigation can be carried out, but Deshmukh was arrested on the first day of inquiry by officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED). ''I think it is a pre-planned strategy to harass, defame and indulge in mud-slinging of key leaders of the MVA government (in Maharashtra)," the Rajya Sabha member said. Deshmukh was arrested by the ED late Monday night after over 12 hours of questioning in the money laundering case linked to an alleged extortion racket in the state police establishment.

Notably, former Maharashtra minister Ashish Shelar on Tuesday claimed that the MVA government may have helped Param Bir Singh to flee and could be ''preparing ground for him to seek political asylum'' in a western country.