Will commit suicide publicly, says Shiv Sena (UBT) leader accused of mafia links, graft

Nashik : Rubbishing allegations of graft and mafia links against him, Shiv Sena (UBT) Nashik leader Sudhakar Badgujar on Monday said if charges against him are proved, he will commit suicide in public.

Badgujar, facing a SIT probe for allegations of mafia links after photos and videos showed him dancing with a terror convict Salim Shaikh alias 'Kutta', is now booked by Nashik Police on Sunday in a forgery and cheating case.

The ACB case pertains to a 2016 panel report of the Nashik Municipal Corporation claiming that Badgujar, then a Municipal Corporator and a NMC Standing Committee Member, was allegedly cornering civic contracts for his own company.

Stoutly denying the charges, Badgujar told mediapersons today that false cases are being filed pertaining to old matters against Opposition parties, but he will fully cooperate with the investigations.

"If the charges against me are proved true, then I will hang myself publicly in front of the ACB office in the presence of my Shiv Sainiks," he declared.

The Maharashtra government SIT is investigating his alleged mafia links for which the Nashik Police have questioned him for the past three days, and now Badgujar and some of his associates are likely to be probed by the ACB.

The ACB followed up the case by raiding two premises of Badgujar on Sunday night and the operations continued till early Monday morning.

Criticising the ACB action, Badgujar said that he was served a notice at 7 p.m. on Sunday and his two residences were raided at 7.30 p.m., after a cheating case was filed against him.

He said that he had never indulged in cheating anyone and he had quit the said company which had bagged the civic contracts, in 2006.

Badgujar said that the original complaint was filed against by the ACB in 2013, then how it took them 10 years to take action now, adding that "the police department is working under pressure to do injustice".

He slammed the police and the Bharatiya Janata Party for harassment, filing false cases by misusing power, and said that "power comes and goes, it does not last forever", and has demanded that the ACB should give him at least a week to reply to its notice.