The Cyber branch of the Mumbai police on Saturday summoned Maharashtra’s former chief minister and current leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP before it on Sunday to record his statement relating to the leak of classified information relating to the much-discussed phone tapping case.
In a development that came less than as fortnight after the Pune police registered an FIR against senior IPS officer and former police commissioner Rashmi Shukla under the Indian Telegraph Act in the phone tapping case, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Cyber cell of the Mumbai crime police Nitin Jadhav asked Fadnavis to appear before the police at 11 am on March 13 ( Monday) to provide information relating to the phone tapping case.
“We have a reason to believe that you can give us factual information relating to the case. Hence we request you to appear before us tomorrow to record your statement in the case,” the ACP stated in his notice. Disclosing that he had been summoned by the cyber branch of the Mumbai police had issued him a notice under section 162 CrPC calling him to appear before the BKC Cyber Police Station at 11 am Sunday. “I will go there tomorrow and record my statement,” he said. Talking to media persons here, Fadnavis said: "As a Leader of Opposition, I have the privilege not to reveal where I got the information from.
All the same, I was State Home Minister once and I understand my responsibility. If an offence was falsely registered and if the police want some help, I will respond. So, I will go to the Police Station tomorrow,” Fadnavis said Fadnavis -- who faces the allegation of “leaking” details relating to a “top secret” report submitted to it in August last year by the then State Intelligence Commissioner Rashmi Shukla through the then the Director-General of Police Subodh Jaiswal --came down heavily on the Shiv Sena-led MVA government for “protecting” those involved in the alleged racket involving the transfers and promotions of police officers ranging from inspectors to high-ranging IPS officers. “Instead of concentrating their efforts on those behind the transfer scam, the state government is targeting those who exposed the scam. The state government had brushed under carpet the report relating to the officers transfers’ scam for six months. The case is not being probed by CBI.
The state government is protecting those behind the transfer scam. Those who exposed the scam are being called to the questioning for recording the statement,” he said. It may be recalled that the State Intelligence Department (SID) had lodged a complaint with the police after Maharashtra’s former chief minister and senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis had on March 23, 2021 gone to town demanding a CBI inquiry into the alleged racket involving the transfers and promotions of police officers ranging from inspectors to high-ranging IPS officers. Fadnavis had made his demand based on a confidential report submitted by the then State Intelligence Commissioner Rashmi Shukla through the then the Director-General of Police Subodh Jaiswal on August 25, 2020 allegedly involving corruption in matters relating to the transfers and promotions of police officers ranging from inspectors to high-ranging IPS officers. On his part, Fadnavis had cited a letter written by Shukla in her capacity as the then State Intelligence Commissioner. “I have 6.3 GB of data that includes the call records and the transcripts which I will hand over to the Union Home secretary as he is the custodian of IPS officers and demand a CBI inquiry into the transfer-posting-promotion racket,” Fadnavis had said.
At his Saturday’s news conference, Fadnavis denied that he had leaked the report to the media. He said that he had had submitted the report on the transfer scam that he received to the then Union Home Secretary. The summoning of Fadnavis comes on the heels of the Pune police registering an FIR against senior IPS officer and former police commissioner Rashmi Shukla under the Indian Telegraph Act.
It may be recalled that on February 26, Pune’s Bund Garden police registered an FIR against Shulka under section 26 of the Indian Telegraph Act for allegedly tapping phones of politicians during her tenure as the then Police Commissioner of Pune between March 2016 and July 2018. Shukla, who is currently Additional Director General (ADG) of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) based in Hyderabad, is being investigated for alleged illegal tapping of politicians' phones during the previous BJP-Shiv Sena government between 2015 and 2019.
When the phone-tapping scandal broke out, Shukla was functioning as the Additional DGP of Maharashtra State Intelligence Department. However, she was shunted to a relatively insignificant position as the Chief of Civil Defence on September 3, 2020.
