Devendra Fadnavis denies submitting documents of phone tapping case to media

Former Maharashtra chief minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, whose statement was recorded in the phone tapping case said that he had submitted the documents of the case to the Union Home Secretary and not media.

Speaking to media persons after recording his statement with Mumbai Cyber Police on Sunday, Fadnavis said that he is the "whistleblower" of this case.

Slamming the Maharashtra government, he alleged that they had been brushing aside the case for the past six months.

"A police team recorded my statement in the transfer posting case (which pertains to phone tapping case). I answered all questions. Maharashtra government had been brushing aside the case for the past six months. I am a whistleblower of this case," the BJP leader said.

"I submitted the documents regarding State's transfer case to Union Home Secretary. I have not shared the documents with the media," he added.

A team of Mumbai Police visited his residence to record his statement.

"I was asked questions as if I am the accused in the case. I clearly told them that I did not give these documents to the press. I made an announcement in the press but gave the documents to the competent authority," he said.

Fadnavis further alleged that the state government was hiding these documents and he pulled them out and handed them over to the competent authority.

"I could not hand it over to the government as they themselves were scamsters. Moreover, it had the names of IPS officers and their competent authority is Union Home Secretary. That is why I handed over the documents to them. There is no relation of Official Secret Act here," he said.

Last month, Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil had alleged that phones of political leaders, including state Congress chief Nana Patole, minister Bachchu Kadu, former MLA Ashish Deshmukh, former MP Sanjay Kakade and others were tapped illegally by IPS officer Rashmi Shukla, when she was the state intelligence chief.

A case against unidentified persons was registered in Mumbai last year under the Official Secrets Act at the BKC cyber police station for illegally tapping phones and leaking confidential documents following a complaint lodged by the State Intelligence Department (SID).

The then Maharashtra Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte had alleged in his inquiry report that Rashmi Shukla had leaked the confidential report. On the basis of the inquiry report, an FIR was filed against the IPS officer.

Later, Fadnavis cited a letter purportedly written by Shukla to the then Director General of Police (DGP) of the state about alleged corruption in transfers in the police department. Reportedly, the letter had details of intercepted phone calls, which led to the accusation that Shukla tapped phones without permission.

( With inputs from ANI )

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