Complaint against Fadnavis for 'favouring' wife's bank

Nagpur: A Nagpur-based RTI activist has complained to the Enforcement Directorate, seeking a probe against Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for allegedly using his position to help improve the business of a private bank where his wife holds a top corporate post.

Activist Mohnish J Jabalpure shot off the letter to the ED in Nagpur claiming that the government has directed officials of the police department to transfer the salary accounts of various departments to the private sector Axis Bank.

While this has benefited Axis Bank, it has reportedly caused a huge loss to the nationalized banks which were handling such salary accounts till then, he said. "I have already filed a public interest litigation in Bombay High Court (Nagpur bench) in this regard which is expected to come up for hearing on Thursday (August 29).

Earlier, I have written letters to the Chief Secretary, but no action was taken in the matter," Jabalpure said. In his petition, Jabalpure has accused Fadnavis - whose wife Amruta holds a senior position in Axis Bank - of arbitrarily directing the salary accounts of lakhs of policemen of the state police department to be transferred to Axis Bank, vide a circular on May 11, 2017.

A professional banker, Amruta Fadnavis, 40, is currently Axis Bank's Vice-President and Corporate Head for West India.