A suspect under scanner by ICC watchdog Anti-Corruption and Security Unit, and arrested for betting thrice – in Ulhasnagar (2002), Raipur (2005) and Mumbai (2009) – under the Gambling and Telegraph Act), Jaisinghani was hotly pursued by ED because of his close dealings with master-mind bookie Mukesh Sharma, who was picked up in Delhi.
Three months after dna front-paged a report asking why Mumbai police provided a known international cricket bookie Anil Jaisinghani with gun-toting police protection just before the World Cup began, there are bound to be several red faces among Mumbai's top cops after a Gujarat enforcement directorate (ED) team swooped down on his Ulhasnagar home around 7.30 am on Friday.
A suspect under scanner by ICC watchdog Anti-Corruption and Security Unit, and arrested for betting thrice – in Ulhasnagar (2002), Raipur (2005) and Mumbai (2009) – under the Gambling and Telegraph Act), Jaisinghani was hotly pursued by ED because of his close dealings with master-mind bookie Mukesh Sharma, who was picked up in Delhi. Mukesh Sharma runs the notorious betting website betfair.com on which Jaisinghani had several accounts.
Till the time of going to press, a posse of ED officers were still combing through the bookie's Gol Maidan apartment. Gujarat ED sources, who confirmed that a team had indeed gone to nab Jaisinghani, described the happenings there as "full of drama".
"The team, upon landing there, was shocked to find three armed Mumbai cops actually trying to obstruct them. They went inside and from the smoke and smell it could be assumed that some papers were being burnt," said the source who added, "When the door was finally opened after an hour, Jaisinghani was lying down with an oxygen mask on his face. He said he was facing difficulty in breathing and wanted to see his doctor. We served a summons on him to be present in the ED office in Ahmedabad on Monday."
When Jaisinghani left for the doctor, the team began searching through the apartment. "His wife Karishma began screaming and threatened to tear her clothes and file an FIR against the ED
officials for molesting her," said the source who said she was holding on to a phone very closely. "When we asked her for it, she flung it out of the window and later claimed that it had fallen out. She fled the scene when allowed to retrieve it."
The senior source expressed shock that the armed policemen kept recounting to "someone senior" in reverential tone, a blow-by-blow account of the happenings in Ulhasnagar.
When asked whether Jaisinghani – who is known to keep police on the run often using their own resources – would not flee, a top Gujarat ED official told dna, "We have invoked very stringent provisions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. This time he won't find it easy to wriggle out."
Ironically, Jaisinghani's name shows up as a history-sheeter on Thane police website. In 2010, a question raised in the state legislative assembly by Devendra Fadnavis and in the council by Ranjit Patil of the BJP on why Jaisinghani was given protection, saw an embarrassed R R Patil (the late ex-home minister) withdraw it.
Questions had been raised by many like BJP MLA Narendra Pawar over why protection to a kingpin in the betting scam has been reinstated. In a letter to Fadnavis and Patil (copied to Thane CP Vijay Kamble and Mumbai CP Rakesh Maria), Pawar had asked, "How can a man with such an 'impressive' criminal track record of half-murder, extortion, intimidation and fraud be given police protection by this government when it was withdrawn at your behest earlier?"
The letter also pointed out, "Jaisinghani, who cumulatively enjoyed police protection under the earlier regime for 11 years, owes the home department over Rs 38 lakh in fees," and asks, "How can he get
protection again when he hasn't paid up for before?"
dna's attempts at getting reaction from MoS Home Ranjit Patil and Mumbai CP Rakesh Maria on Friday's developments drew a blank.
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