Sanjay Raut Appears Before PMLA Court Over Patra Chawl Money-Laundering Case

Sanjay Raut

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut appeared before the Special PMLA Court on Thursday as part of a regular hearing related to the alleged money-laundering case involving Goregaon’s Patra Chawl.

He attended the court session in accordance with his bail conditions. The next hearing is scheduled for October 21.

Previously, Swapna Patkar, a witness in the case, sent a letter to the Additional Director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) accusing the accused and their associates of threatening and pressuring her to alter her statements. Patkar claimed she was coerced into changing her testimony and pressured to transfer land titles to Sanjay Raut and his family.

Patkar had also reported an incident to the Vakola police in Mumbai, where a bottle containing a threatening letter was thrown into her residence’s premises. She heard the bottle break late at night and found the letter inside it, which warned her against speaking out in court.

Sanjay Raut, an MP from Shiv Sena (UBT), is alleged to be involved in this case. On June 28, 2022, Raut was summoned by the ED in connection with the money-laundering case related to the Rs 1,034 crore Patra Chawl land scam.

The Patra Chawl, located in Siddarth Nagar, Goregaon, Mumbai, was slated for redevelopment in 2008. Originally built as a military barrack during World War II, it housed 672 tenants across 47 acres. MHADA appointed Guru Ashish Construction Pvt Ltd (GACPL), a subsidiary of Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL), to redevelop the area and rehabilitate the tenants.

According to the tripartite agreement between the society, Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), and GACPL, the developer was supposed to build flats for the tenants and MHADA.

However, GACPL misled MHADA, sold the Floor Space Index (FSI) to nine other developers, and collected approximately Rs 901.79 crore without fulfilling the agreement to construct the required rehabilitation and MHADA portions.