The State Home Department in Maharashtra is gearing up for a significant overhaul of its top police leadership, including the position of Director General of Police (DGP) and Police Commissioners of Nagpur and Thane. The impending retirement of the current DGP, Rajnish Seth, on December 31 has prompted the department to commence the process of selecting his successor.A top rank official said that several prominent names have emerged as contenders for the esteemed position of State DGP. The frontrunner is Senior IPS Officer Rashmi Shukla, who currently serves as the Director General (DG) of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB). Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar is also a strong candidate for the role. Other notable contenders include Thane CP Jaijeet Singh, DG ATS Sadanand Date, DG Police Housing Sandeep Bishnoi, DG Railway Pradnya Sarvade, Additional Director of NIA Atulchandra Kulkarni, and DG State Security Corporation Bipin Kumar Singh, he said. He further stated that the State Home
By Dheeraj Fartode
Economic Offences Wing (EoW) of Crime Branch on Wednesday filed chargesheet against Prashant Wasankar and others booked for duping hundreds of investors in the special court. The chargesheet running into 4,025-pages against Wasankar Wealth Management Ltd and its directors has revealed the modus operandi of firm and how innocent investors were taken for a ride and offences under Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID) Act were committed by all the accused.
The chargesheet has been filed against three accused -- Chairman of Wasankar Wealth Management Ltd Prashant Jaideo Wasankar; his brother-in-law and Director Abhijit Jayant Choudhary and Director Vinay Wasankar-- arrested by EoW which is probing the case.
The accused have been chargesheeted under various sections of the IPC and also under certain provisions of the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID) Act.
EoW had booked Chairman, Directors, Chief Executive Officer and three employees of Wasankar Wealth Management Ltd for allegedly duping investors to the tune of crores of rupees on May 9 on the basis of a complaint lodged by well-known builder Vivek Pathak.
On the basis of the complaint, an offence under Sections 420, 406, 506, 120 of the Indian Penal Code read with Section 3 of the MPID act was registered against Wasankar. His arrest was a big blow for hundreds of his investors and admirers who viewed him as some sort of financial wizard with a Midas touch. Initially, a substantial number of investors mobilised support for Wasankar and termed the complainants as spoilsports, but later harsh reality surfaced before them and many of them quietly filed complaint against Wasankar.
Additional Commissioner of Police (Adl. CP) Sunil Kolhe told ‘The Hitavada’ that the chargesheet has been filed within 60 days after arrest of the three accused. Total 303 complaints have been received so far and invested amount is Rs 45 crore. Most of them were promised very attractive interest rates and guaranteed returns and as per papers submitted by complainants, they ought to have received Rs 90 crore from Wasankar.
“We are receiving two to three complaints against Wasankar everyday as investors are willingly approaching police against Wasankar wealth Management Ltd,” Kolhe said. He further said that the police is likely to interrogate business associates who are attached with Wasankar’s firm.
As more investors are approaching police, the case is getting legally stronger, said a legal expert. Sources informed that the investors who were till now hopeful of getting back their returns are now demoralised and approaching EoW sleuths.
The company claimed of dealing in financial planning, earning ideas, stock broking, depository, portfolio advisory, fixed income, life and general insurance, and mutual fund. It accepted huge investments from people not only from Maharashtra but also from other states by promising them hefty returns.
However, Wasankar and Choudhary while applying for bail flatly shirked all responsibility and had questioned the applicability of MPID against them. Infact, the alleged transactions were part of loan transactions for which promissory notes were issued in his individual capacity, Wasankar had claimed in his bail application while disputing prosecution theory.
Now, the chargesheet has meticulously reconstructed entire transactions of complainants, how money changed hands, portfolios created, interest/dividend was paid and how default started. This is only first chargesheet and many supplementary chargesheets will be filed in due course, prosecution stated.
Infact the investors were worried that Wasankar would be released on bail, if the chargesheets were not filed in time and had met EoW officials on Tuesday demanding filing of chargesheet and also expressed anguish over inordinate delay in trailing back the money, finding out movable and immovable properties purchased out of crime proceeds and inability of the prosecution to present a water-tight argument against Wasankar who is now trying to portray the investors as moneylenders.
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