ED raids agro company owned by Sharad Pawar's grand nephew

The Enforcement Directorate on Friday searched premises of Baramati Agro, a company owned by MLA Rohit Pawar, grand nephew of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, and linked entities as part of a money laundering probe into the alleged Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam, official sources said.

At least six locations in Baramati, Pune, Pimpri and Aurangabad are being searched, they said.

The office of Baramati Agro in Baramati town is also being covered.

Rohit Pawar, 38, is NCP MLA from Karjat-Jamkhed seat in the Maharashtra assembly and is the owner and CEO of Baramati Agro.

Rohit is the nephew of Baramati MP Supriya Sule and Ajit Pawar, the Deputy chief minister of the state and MLA from Baramati.

The probe against his firm pertains to allegations of "diversion" of funds and deposit of earnest funds of a company that bid for the purchase of a Maharashtra-based ailing cooperative sugar factor (CSF).

The MSCB money laundering case stems from an August, 2019 FIR of the Mumbai Police Economic Offences (EOW) wing.

The police complaint came after the Bombay high court issued an order on August 22 that year to investigate the allegations of selling sugar factories in the Maharashtra cooperative sector through alleged fraudulent means and also that they were sold at throwaway prices.