Mumbai: In a recent development, Whatsapp chats attached to a chargesheet filed in a bribery-extortion case against Amruta Fadnavis, the wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, have come to light, revealing startling information. The messages disclose a conversation between Amruta Fadnavis and Anil Jaisinghani, a notorious cricket bookie, who claims to possess incriminating recordings involving her, a report published in The Hindu newspaper said.
According to the report, Anil Jaisinghani asserts that he possesses a recording of Amruta Fadnavis stating, “Make MVA fall and trap Eknath Shinde and Anil Parab.” MVA refers to the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition. These revelations add a new twist to the ongoing investigation.
Anil Jaisinghani happens to be the father of Anishka, a law student who allegedly met Amruta Fadnavis in November 2021, under the pretext of discussing her work as a designer of clothes, footwear, and bags. During the meeting, Anishka Jaisinghani, who claimed to be supporting her family due to the absence of a mother, threatened to make public voice notes and video clips involving Amruta Fadnavis unless she paid a sum of Rs 10 crore and cleared her father’s name of all charges. Additionally, Anishka Jaisinghani offered a bribe of Rs 1 crore to Amruta Fadnavis to exonerate her father from several cases. However, the bribe was declined.
The Mumbai Police arrested both Anil Jaisinghani and Anishka Jaisinghani on March 16, with Anishka Jaisinghani obtaining bail on March 27. The chargesheet, filed by the police last month, contains WhatsApp conversations between Anil Jaisinghani, his daughter Anishka, and Amruta Fadnavis.
In one of the messages sent by Anil Jaisinghani to Amruta Fadnavis, he wrote, “Last Shivratri you said to make MVA Government fall and how to trap Eknath Shinde and Anil Parab. I have all the recordings and proof; don’t worry — Happy Shivratri.” Jaisinghani claims to possess a video recording of Amruta Fadnavis receiving cash in dollars, which he mentions in another chat.
The report further reveals that in a different conversation, Jaisinghani emphasized that they seek justice above all else. He mentioned reinvestigations that took place during the previous government’s tenure and under the Commissioners of Police Hemant Nagrale and Sanjay Pandey. Jaisinghani alleged that the cases against him were falsely filed and nearly closed, but with the shift in power, Deven Bharti (Special Commissioner) was expected to return to the Mumbai Police, owing to his close association with Deputy Chief Minister Fadnavis. Jaisinghani urged Amruta Fadnavis to request Deven Bharti not to harm him.
These revelations have added significant intrigue to the ongoing bribery-extortion case against Amruta Fadnavis. The veracity of the alleged recordings and their potential impact on the political landscape remains to be seen as the investigation progresses.
