Patra Chawl scam: Sanjay Raut’s judicial custody extended till September 19

Mumbai, Sep 05: A special court in Mumbai on Monday extended the judicial custody of Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut till September 19 in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of a Mumbai 'chawl'.

Raut, 60, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on August 1 in connection with alleged financial irregularities in the redevelopment of the Patra Chawl (row tenement) in suburban Goregaon.

The ED's investigation pertains to alleged financial irregularities in the redevelopment of the Patra 'chawl' and related financial transactions involving Raut's wife and associates.

Raut, a Rajya Sabha member, was found to be a beneficiary of Rs 1.17 crore of proceeds of crime in addition to Rs 1.06 crore that had come to light earlier, it claimed.

The documents seized during the probe showed the purchase of properties at Alibaug in neighbouring Raigad district by Raut involved substantial cash transactions, the ED had said. As much as Rs 1.08 crore was found in the bank account of Sanjay Raut's wife Varsha Raut, the probe agency had claimed.

Raut, a close aide of Shiv Sena president and former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, has denied any wrongdoing and called the ED case against him "false".